Group : Six People in Search of a Life
"It's painful to listen to yourself, at least in the beginning, but the alternative is endless suffering," says Dr. Lathon (a pseudonym), the therapist of this group. This book is not a self-help text, says author Paul Solotaroff, but a "work of narrative journalism" documenting six people living through a year of group therapy. The people and their problems are real, but their identities are disguised to protect their anonymity. Solotaroff, who was a participant in an earlier group with Lathon, is a creative, accomplished writer who brings the people to life visually as well as orally. Lathon "looked like a man with his own Learjet, or the maitre d' at a restaurant you couldn't afford." You get to know Lathon's humor, insights, and commentary on his patients. His number-one rule is hard work; next is fearless honesty. The six group members are intriguing, witty, dramatic, and in pain--like characters in an Edward Albee play. Their troubles run the gamut: substance abuse, infidelity, embezzlement, emotional abuse, loneliness, unfinished business with parents. If you've been wondering how group therapy works and what you might learn about yourself, you'll get plenty of insights. If you just like to eavesdrop on other people baring their souls of troubled, intimate details, you'll get that here, too.--Joan Price