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When the Book Review Editor of this journal asked me whether I was interested in reviewing this book, I initially felt some hesitation because of my associations to the terms narcissism and perversion. One would be hard put to find two other psychoanalytic terms so broadly and variably used and so poorly defined and understood. I am certainly as guilty as the next psychoanalyst in this regard. What led me to agree to review this book was my experience that so many, perhaps the majority, of cases I treat or hear about from students and colleagues could be described as “narcissistic.” Because of this I am always in the market to learn more about what we mean by the term.
The term perversion, as well, seems like an idea that we all agree is important, even though we are not so clear about what it means. I am happy to report that this is a book that is written in a clear and accessible style, and that both students and experienced practitioners will benefit from reading it. The authors are Israeli psychoanalysts, married to each other. Evidently, they have lived in various places, studied with many
diverse thinkers, and read widely—not only in the psychoanalytic literature, but also in philosophy and world literature. As a result of this broad study and experience, and of the synthetic quality of their minds, they have written a book that is both very personal and creative but also steeped in the work of others. My experience of reading it was to spend time in the presence of wise and honest psychoanalysts who convey the vitality and liveliness of their work.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the clinical situation, containing both theoretical discussion and extensive verbatim process material. The theory is clearly described and the process is open, honest, and easily resonant with this reader’s experience. The authors write from a position balanced between an emphasis on internal forces, on one hand, and the external forces that drive beha