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There has been a growing resurgence of interest in psychoanalytic field theory in recent years. This is due in part to the pursuit of theories of technique in field theory that respond to contemporary sensibilities
and concerns in psychoanalysis. One of the most prominent forms of field theory today is the one developed from Bion's principles and techniques. Two prolific and highly creative psychoanalysts writing about post-Bionian field theory today are Antonino Ferro and Giuseppe Civitarese. It was with great pleasure and admiration that I have read the four books I will discuss here; the sustained work of Ferro and Civitarese has offered the analytic community much to think about. They have also given us elaborations and clarifications of Bion's techniques that open up new vistas in clinical work.
Each of these authors has a unique and engaging style, and when they write together, yet a third voice emerges. Ferro's book on working with children, The Bi-Personal Field: Experiences in Child Analysis, offers a warm and personal account of his thoughts about clinical encounters and his own work with children. At the same time, his discussion incorporates clarity of his theoretical position.
Reading Civitarese's The Intimate Room: Theory and Technique of the Analytic Field is like being immersed in a meditation on the varieties of transference and the role of the analyst. The Necessary Dream: New Theories and Techniques of Interpretation in Psychoanalysis, also by Civitarese, is beautifully written and offers the reader a dream of psychoanalysis through a discourse that engages with films, television programs, and the characters' emotional experiences. The Analytic Field and Its Transformations consists of ten papers,