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Perhaps a more appropriate title for Jane Hall's first book, Deepening the Treatment, should be: How to Deepen the Treatment (in eight easy-to-read chapters). It is an excellent book for the beginning therapist. Ms. Hall has successfully compiled a comprehensive look at what it takes to deepen treatment from the first contact with a patient through termination. While most of what is contained in this book will be familiar to the psychoanalytically trained therapist, such a reader still stands to gain from this commendable review of psychoanalytic work. The contents of the book reflect Ms. Hall's traditional psychoanalytic orientation and training, drawing upon her own experiences with patients as well as those of her teachers, colleagues and students. Her generous usage of case material makes this book remarkably accessible and alive.
With self-acknowledged avoidance of jargon, Ms. Hall uses simple language in discussing such complex concepts as transference. She presents the material with the ease and confidence of an experienced practitioner, sharing her wisdom in a straightforward manner with such statements as “common sense is our most valuable asset” in reference to the tact and timing of interventions (p. 25). Instructively using clinical vignettes, the author offers a practical guide to deepening psychoanalytic treatment, thorough in its coverage of the myriad issues that arise during a treatment. She discusses many of the essential elements that must be given attention while making a therapeutic setting conducive to analytic work. A glance at the table of contents reflects the scope of therapy covered in this book. The first three chapters are titled, “Setting the Stage—Providing the Structure (An Ongoing Process),” “First Meetings—The Consultation Phase,”