Every Day Gets A Little Closer: A Twice-told Therapy [Paperback]

Irvin D. Yalom (Author), Ginny Elkin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2, 1991

The many thousands of readers of the best-selling Love’s Executioner will welcome this paperback edition of an earlier work by Dr. Irvin Yalom, written with Ginny Elkin, a pseudonymous patient whom he treated—the first book to share the dual reflections of psychiatrist and patient.Ginny Elkin was a troubled young and talented writer whom the psychiatric world had labeled as ”schizoid.” After trying a variety of therapies, she entered into private treatment with Dr. Irvin Yalom at Stanford University. As part of their work together, they agreed to write separate journals of each of their sessions. Every Day Gets a Little Closer is the product of that arrangement, in which they alternately relate their descriptions and feelings about their therapeutic relationship.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Irvin D. Yalom, M.D., is professor emeritus of psychiatry at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He was the recipient of the 1974 Edward Strecker Award and the 1979 Foundation's Fund Prize in Psychiatry. He is the author of When Nietzche Wept (winner of the 1993 Commonwealth Club gold medal for fiction), Love's Executioner, Every Day Gets a Little Closer (with Ginny Elkin), and the classic textbooks Inpatient Group Psychotherapy and Existential Psychotherapy. Irvin D. Yalom, M.D., is the author of The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy and Love’s Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy, among other books. He is a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (January 2, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465021182
• ISBN-13: 978-0465021185
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Mental Health > Schizophrenia

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars an inside, personal look on therapy, March 13, 2000

By 

Maria from London (London UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Every Day Gets A Little Closer: A Twice-told Therapy (Paperback)

After reading 2 other books by Dr. Yalom ("Love's executioner.." & "Momma..." I came to "Every day gets a little closer". I'm glad I read the other two books first, because they make a better introduction to the writer / psychiatrist's work. "Every day gets a little closer" is a much more "closed" book, meaning that it takes some time & patience to get through it.

What it is the account of Ginny Elkin's (pseudonym) therapy, written from the point of view of both Dr. Yalom, & Ginny. It is often striking how these 2 points of view can be so different! & yet, while reading this book, you get a definite sense of the therapeutic relationship developing, of the existing & growing feelings between doctor & patient.

The down side is that the book is definitely slow, although very rewarding at times. But then, the therapeutic process itself is slow. What I found really interesting was the afterword by Dr. Yalom which describes the process & the methods he used while treating Ginny. It put a new light on the whole book, which at times seemed chaotic.

All in all, definitely give this book a go if you're interested in the therapy relationship, in the magic & slow change that occurs in the therapist's office. But don't expect a quick & easy read, because you'll be disappointed.

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yalom does it again, January 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Every Day Gets A Little Closer: A Twice-told Therapy (Paperback)

Trained in counseling psychology with 10 years experience, I've read most of Yalom's works and in this, as usual he, and his client, are able to convey, in this case through an actual CASE, the candid and wonderfully challenging, beautiful process of growth through relationship - a definite read for those in training (it is normalizing of an often foreign training process) and interested in the drones, pains and small delights of how psychotherapy works. For the practitioner it poses as a refresher course to what we may have forgotten. This book lets you in to this strange world of healing, including the boredom, sensitivity, [counter] tranference issues and realness of the process, and the amazing world of a very interesting client. I recommend an overview reading from beginning to end and going back to find finer points and connections. I would not recommend this for people who thrive in the excitement of psychodrama, however - too slow. Love's Executioner may be a better bet for you. Great works.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars not the best yalom has to offer..., January 10, 2001

By 

Daniel Mackler (on the road) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Every Day Gets A Little Closer: A Twice-told Therapy (Paperback)

this was his book i was most excited to read, and while i think the concept is great, i don't think it really worked. the accounts were often long-winded and dull, and when there were little gems within that made it worth wading through, they were often hidden amidst pages of muck. i still think the idea behind the book is strong and could work, however, and i admire yalom for trying, but at the same time i wonder if it's not somewhat unethical to reveal so much to a patient about the therapist's feelings, and also to give her free therapy in exchange for writing for him - like, is it a conflict of interest on his part, and therefore countertherapeutic? also, the book doesn't really say if she got better in the long-term. i'm not so sure... still glad i read the book, but didn't honestly feel i got too much out of it. many of his other books are head and shoulders above this one...