Book Review: Love's Executioner

Love's Executioner: & Other Tales of Psychotherapy by Irvin D. Yalom
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is a must-read for any therapist, but beyond that, it is just a really powerful look at the human condition and what it is to be open, empathetic and supportive enough to help people become their best selves. Yalom's writing is approachable and entertaining.

The title refers to the therapist's role having to sometimes "kill" the irrational fancy of some loves. However, it also refers to love inevitably being executed by the human condition. In the end, our life experience is our own to be experienced alone (even if we are experiencing life hand-in-hand with another person). While this may sound grim, it actually is a positive --- it is the real connections that we make with each other which infuses life with meaning. And the richness of unique experiences that are our own make it an incredible trip.

The other thing I love about reading Yalom is that I learn so many new words. Many are words I have heard before, but in the context of SAT study cards or while reading the dictionary [yeah, I have been known to do that for fun]. He has such a mastery of our beautiful language that he pushes the boundaries of vocabulary to access the less commonly used words that perfectly capture the meaning of the story he is telling. It is just beautiful.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever been in therapy, considered therapy, or anyone that has ever pondered human relations and the human condition (there we go, I think that covers just about everyone [smile:].) I have a feeling that this will be on my to-give gift list as I just loved it. Such a wonderful, good read.

New words: capriciousness, insouciant, extirpated, insouciant, labile, leitmotif, perspicacious, sagacious, salubrious, sophistry