A client recommended this to me. We were in London at the time, and so at the end of the session, being by the bookshops on Charing Cross Road, I popped in and bought a copy. And was engrossed. Love, laughter, lies, envy, hope, betrayal, sex, loss, changing – it’s all in here, told through real stories of Stephen working with clients during his many years as a psychoanalyst. It gives wonderful insights into the world of human experience, and the experience of being the listener and therapist.

Whilst I’m not in the medical profession, the responsibility that comes with being the listener and the asker of questions really resonated with me. As did possibly too many of the client’s stories. There were quite a few ‘Ahhh, that’s me’, and a few ‘Ahhh, that’s them’ as I justified how I felt about others and their behaviours. It was warming to read of some of Stephen’s own doubts, joys and not-knowings. If you’re interested by what it is to be human, and you are prepared to see this as a mirror as well as a window, you’ll probably love it as much as I did.