Letters to a Young Therapist

By Mary Pipher

Book Overview

Revised

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1541609573
• ISBN13: 9781541609570
• Release Date: October 2026
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 224 Pages
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 13 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 8 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Bound to become a classic!

As a Social Worker in private psychotherapy practice, I find that sometimes the work can be isolating and at times I question whether I should make more of an effort to consider the latest trends in psychotherapy. Mary Pipher affirms that the classic skills that make a good therapist such as compassion, empathy, listening skills, reframing and the ability to induce a sense of calm are timeless. Furthermore, even if I wasn't a therapist I think I would still devour this book because her writing is a pleasure to read. I highly recommend it for anyone just starting their career in therapy or those who have been in the field for decades. This book is bound to become a classic!

Love this book

As a grad student in a counseling program, I picked up this book after hearing a portion of Ms. Pipher's interview with Diane Reams on NPR. I read this book in two evenings. It has a lot of good advice, not just for therapists, but also for clients. She has a very soft, nurturing way of writing which I found delightful. I would highly recommend this book.

A Gem- And Not Just for Therapists!

This little treasure is loaded with wisdom and insights one might expect to find in a much larger tome. Dr. Pipher shares her personal and clinical stories in a gentle friendly way that makes you nod your head, and say "aha". What makes this book so remarkable is that, whether one is a therapist or not, the words spill over and warm you like a down comforter. Pour yourself some hot cocoa, take a deep breath, and read this one slowly. You'll be glad you did.-Terry Matlen, ACSW

Lovely

Like JB Pontalis's WINDOWS (with which this book makes an interesting comparison in cultural styles), LETTERS TO A YOUNG THERAPIST is an engaging and lucid look at one clinical psychologist's beliefs, both idiosyncratic and professional. More mature than self-help, less obscure than psychological theory, this one-day-read is ennobling and charming. Pipher writes with dignity about her profession's limitations and how an awareness of those limitations opens up vital possibilities. The format -- brief letters to a therapst-in-training, focused on a specific theme -- is lovely, and the insights, while not revelatory, are deftly articulated. In fact, that the book's insights are not revelatory is in a way its overall theme, and its pleasure. This is a humble, humane, and helpful book.