10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Written with compassion and humanity., January 31, 2004
Generally human behaviour is odd at the best of times. As inhabitants of the planet, most of us do try to live happy and productive lives against varying degrees of opposition, and sometimes our coping skills, the actions we take to be happy, appear to others, including ourselves, to be quite bizarre. This book is a selection of unusual cases from the files of leading therapists. It should be made clear from the start that this isn?t a freak show, tales of the macabre, but a genuine telling of memorable cases from professionals who have made it their life?s work to help people in dire need.
After finishing the text, it also became clear to me that the business of the mind, psychiatry and psychology, is by no means a strict science. The various therapeutic techniques out their being used around the world run into the thousands. It is a social science that is constantly changing and developing. In other terms, there is no blanket cure all ? a miracle technique to make us into happy productive people.
After reading these cases, what most of the therapists had in common was their intuition. They?re confronted by an unusual case, and through active listening, a bit of trial and error, in some instances a breakthrough was made. Sometimes a little progress is made and the session ends, leaving the therapist to remain wondering for years what happed to that particular client. Some of the cases in this collection are exceedingly bizarre, while others, to a great extent, touched the heart. Some of us are pretty resilient beings and can put up with a lot of suffering and pain, and somehow come out smiling. Moreover, there are some cases represented in this book that showed me that some of us need our illnesses simply to live on a day-to-day basis.
Out of the thirty-one cases in the text, all interesting and unique in their own way, one stood out for me the most. The therapist was Bradford Keeney, and the case is called: ?The Medicine Man Who Never Had a Vision.? What makes this case unique was Keeney?s uncanny intuition about how to handle the Indian Shaman. The treatment would not be found in any textbook. In fact, the treatment came to him in a vision! The Shaman followed Keeney?s instructions to the letter to great results. What was even more fascinating was what transpired later, when another Indian came to Keeney with a problem that sent chills up my spine. He dreamed of being confronted by warriors, and his face painted red. The man awoke with his face actually painted red! He was troubled by this and needed some advice from the ?white? medicine man. This case reinforced the fact that the mind and spirit have far greater potential and depth than we care to admit.
This book is written with genuine compassion and a noticeable humanity. Highly recommended to those interested in the mind and our culture in general.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Mummy at the Dining Room Table, February 14, 2003
Who could pass up a title like this? The casual reader, counselors-in-training, professionals, and clients will reach for it, if only to scan, and will end up carrying it to the checkout stand. In spite of the serious nature of the subject matter, this is no mere treatise of the "how to" genre. Instead, the reader is privileged to hear from well-known therapists, stories of the most unusual cases in their practices. To boot, we are privy to the unique ways in which these cases were approached and resolved. It is fascinating, enormously interesting, and entertainingly told by Kottler and Carlson. The writing style manages to weave humor into the fabric of the bizarre and we are reminded that "truth is stranger than fiction." A fun and easy read! I highly recommend it! Five stars!
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Review of The Mummy at the Dining Room Table, February 11, 2003
The Mummy at the Dining Room Table by Jeffrey Kottler and Jon Carlson is a wonderful book that is very entertaining to the reader. Although the stories are humorous, they have a message for the reader that is touching. Each of the stories is provided by noted therapy experts. The stories are presented in a narrative format that is easy to read. I particularly want to comment on the following two stories:
---Jay Haley's story about the 82 year old prostitute
---Brad Keeney's medicine man who had never had a vision.
Truly Kottler and Carlson have created a book that is a "must" for therapists and their clients. When you read these stories, it will make you feel normal! I give the book 5 stars.
Loretta J. Bradley, Ph.D.
Professor, Counselor Education, Texas Tech University
Past President, American Counseling Association
Past President, Association for counselor Education and Supervision
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