Couch Fiction: A Graphic Tale of Psychotherapy
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-16 09:56:05
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Philippa Perry
- ISBN：0241461782
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Ever wanted to know what really happens in a therapist's consultation room？
Bestselling author Philippa Perry （The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read） turns her keen insights to the power of therapy。 This compelling study of psychotherapy in the form of a graphic novel vividly explores a year's therapy sessions as a search for understanding and truth。
Beautifully illustrated by Flo Perry， author of How to Have Feminist Sex， and accompanied by succinct and illuminating footnotes， this book offers a witty and thought-provoking exploration of the therapeutic journey， considering a range of skills， insights and techniques along the way。
Bestselling author Philippa Perry （The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read） turns her keen insights to the power of therapy。 This compelling study of psychotherapy in the form of a graphic novel vividly explores a year's therapy sessions as a search for understanding and truth。
Beautifully illustrated by Flo Perry， author of How to Have Feminist Sex， and accompanied by succinct and illuminating footnotes， this book offers a witty and thought-provoking exploration of the therapeutic journey， considering a range of skills， insights and techniques along the way。
Reviews
Anna Chapman
，
As the daughter of two psychologists， and someone who has been through therapy， this book just spoke to me on so many levels。 I loved every second of it！
sonia tan hui yi
，
an insightful and funny book that was easy to understand。 Great introduction for me to psychotherapy！
Maïlys
，
An interesting an accessible journey into a psychotherapy。 It didn't move me the way i thought it would though， maybe it was a bit too analytical for me。 An interesting an accessible journey into a psychotherapy。 It didn't move me the way i thought it would though， maybe it was a bit too analytical for me。 。。。more
Fay Tsigarida
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Genius <3
Emily B
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It was easy to sit and read this in one sitting mainly because it’s so accessible and also interesting。 As a result of reading this I would read other books by Philippa Perry and feel that I can’t help but like her。
Kerri
，
Fun， quick read that， on balance， probably has a bit too much Freud for my taste。 But the notes vs。 panels （i。e。 what's happening in the room） meta layer was interesting - not only what is happening in the therapeutic room in thoughts and words， but the "one layer up" view of what is happening in psychotherapy practice。 The "storming" and resolution felt overly simplistic， but all the pithy explanations of what was going on made me want to spend the evening googling my way through all the terms Fun， quick read that， on balance， probably has a bit too much Freud for my taste。 But the notes vs。 panels （i。e。 what's happening in the room） meta layer was interesting - not only what is happening in the therapeutic room in thoughts and words， but the "one layer up" view of what is happening in psychotherapy practice。 The "storming" and resolution felt overly simplistic， but all the pithy explanations of what was going on made me want to spend the evening googling my way through all the terms presented。 A good appetizer if you're at all interested in the therapeutic process - not to mention the drawings in the Flo Perry version are super fun。 。。。more
Toni
，
I don’t normally read graphic novels but this was the perfect medium for the subject matter。 I didn’t find the story particularly engaging - it basically existed to illustrate the points the author wanted to make - but the footnotes were fascinating and have introduced me to a few concepts I would love to read more about。 As a therapy client myself it made me laugh to see the number of times the therapist said “umm-hmm” while a whole lot was going on in her head that she didn’t reveal - I’m not I don’t normally read graphic novels but this was the perfect medium for the subject matter。 I didn’t find the story particularly engaging - it basically existed to illustrate the points the author wanted to make - but the footnotes were fascinating and have introduced me to a few concepts I would love to read more about。 As a therapy client myself it made me laugh to see the number of times the therapist said “umm-hmm” while a whole lot was going on in her head that she didn’t reveal - I’m not sure I want to know what’s going on behind my own therapist’s “umm-hmm”s！ 。。。more
Sally
，
I loved this。 I've always had such a fascination with psychology so this book was right in my wheelhouse。 If I had my time again I would have studied psychology and am still very unsure as to why I didn't do so in the first place！ Ah， hindsight。 Anyhoo， I thought this was a simple， clever and fascinating look at therapy and how it works from both the perspective of the patient and the therapist。 The book demonstrates the ways in which psychology isn't an exact science， that experience and intuit I loved this。 I've always had such a fascination with psychology so this book was right in my wheelhouse。 If I had my time again I would have studied psychology and am still very unsure as to why I didn't do so in the first place！ Ah， hindsight。 Anyhoo， I thought this was a simple， clever and fascinating look at therapy and how it works from both the perspective of the patient and the therapist。 The book demonstrates the ways in which psychology isn't an exact science， that experience and intuition make a truly expert therapist。 I felt this challenged a lot of preconceived notions people might have about therapy， for example， why people expect therapists will want to discuss their patients childhood and why that makes so many patients deeply uncomfortable。 The author also explains the various philosophies that inform psychotherapy in a concise， accessible and interesting way throughout the book。 I think this is a must read for people with an interest in psychology and therapy and probably would be absolutely brilliant for new therapists。 。。。more
Elizabeth
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I was pointed in the direction of this book from another book， HOW TO STAY SANE。 I don't read many graphic books and I am not sure why because I always enjoy them。 In this book， Pat is the therapist and James is the client。 We have thought bubbles AND dialogue for both characters。 James' initial problem that he has chosen to seek therapy for is kleptomania。 As the sessions progress we learn more about James and his "issues"。 We also learn Pat's attempts （and sometimes misfires） at reaching deepe I was pointed in the direction of this book from another book， HOW TO STAY SANE。 I don't read many graphic books and I am not sure why because I always enjoy them。 In this book， Pat is the therapist and James is the client。 We have thought bubbles AND dialogue for both characters。 James' initial problem that he has chosen to seek therapy for is kleptomania。 As the sessions progress we learn more about James and his "issues"。 We also learn Pat's attempts （and sometimes misfires） at reaching deeper into James。 I thought their work together was admirable and interesting。 I especially liked that Pat kept her professional "cool" and did not do something that would send both of them into "friend" status。 That could definitely have them treading in dangerous waters。 Very good。 There are explanations at the bottom of the pages in small type。 Sometimes I read them， sometimes not。 They are educational。 。。。more
Nigel McFarlane
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Great little book that explores what's going in the minds of psychotherapist and client。 It's funny and informative。 I have the Flo Perry edition， and the illustrations are wonderful; Pat looks exactly like Philippa Perry！ （view spoiler）[ The highlight for me was the uh-oh moment when James confesses to having a sexual fantasy about Pat; the little flecks of cellulite on her imaginary bum were a magical touch。 （hide spoiler）] Great little book that explores what's going in the minds of psychotherapist and client。 It's funny and informative。 I have the Flo Perry edition， and the illustrations are wonderful; Pat looks exactly like Philippa Perry！ （view spoiler）[ The highlight for me was the uh-oh moment when James confesses to having a sexual fantasy about Pat; the little flecks of cellulite on her imaginary bum were a magical touch。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Preez
，
Very interesting and insightful read with beautiful illustrations
Priyanka -
，
I picked this up to satiate my curiousity regarding psychotherapy from a psychotherapist。 The graphical illustration of the sessions were quite insightful and funny。 I expected a bit more details on when it doesn't work too （the other side of the story） and this was more of a generalist approach or outcome。 Nevertheless， this book has good observations and explanations of situations between a client and the therapist。 Some observations or footnotes taught me a whole bunch of jargons such as intr I picked this up to satiate my curiousity regarding psychotherapy from a psychotherapist。 The graphical illustration of the sessions were quite insightful and funny。 I expected a bit more details on when it doesn't work too （the other side of the story） and this was more of a generalist approach or outcome。 Nevertheless， this book has good observations and explanations of situations between a client and the therapist。 Some observations or footnotes taught me a whole bunch of jargons such as introjection and projective identification which seemed quite fact based。 I was more curious to understand of how much do psychotherapists use neuroscience in their profession， which this one didn't address。 However， it's a good one to read it in a sitting if you have no idea about psychotherapy at all。 。。。more
Gemma
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Brilliant， insightful and funny！
Louisa
，
accessible， light and refreshing。 wish it were longer， was very close to feeling skimpy。 appreciated the process tracking， thinks she does it the best amongst all the other authors of psychotherapy tales i’ve read so far。
danes
，
Intriguing behind-the-scenes look into therapy， but a bit underwhelming。 I'm not certain its style （both in the format， the writing， perhaps even the art style） would be received well by many， and it's not something I'd particularly recommend unless you're *that* curious about the topic。 A 3。5 read。 Intriguing behind-the-scenes look into therapy， but a bit underwhelming。 I'm not certain its style （both in the format， the writing， perhaps even the art style） would be received well by many， and it's not something I'd particularly recommend unless you're *that* curious about the topic。 A 3。5 read。 。。。more
Karen Middlebrook
，
I was initially dubious at the idea of a graphic novel based on the therapy process， however I found this very insightful and engaging。 It really brought the process to life， and the afterword which linked in some of the underlying theories was helpful。 Would recommend。
Melissa
，
A really fascinating exploration of therapy
Luciano Picardo
，
This is very easy to read and hilarious。Everyone should read it as an introduction to therapy。I will have to seek out her other books now。
Deeja
，
An interesting little comic about the relationship between Therapist and Client that delves deeply in to the side of the Therapist which I found very refreshing and interesting as a frequent Client。 The main characters feel very 3-dimensional while standing in for the every man and the flavour text comments on each page give real insight in to what certain questions are meant to arouse in the conversation partner。 A fun， fast read for anyone interested in the subject。
Karen
，
A wonderful insight into the psychotherapist's couch from the perspective of both the client and the psychotherapist。 Although therapy is a serious subject and something many more of us could benefit from embracing without shame or embarrassment， there is nothing remotely stodgy about this book。 The humour injected by the author and the marvellous treatment of the topic in the graphic novel form （with fabulous illustrations）， make this a delightful， as well as an informative read。 A wonderful insight into the psychotherapist's couch from the perspective of both the client and the psychotherapist。 Although therapy is a serious subject and something many more of us could benefit from embracing without shame or embarrassment， there is nothing remotely stodgy about this book。 The humour injected by the author and the marvellous treatment of the topic in the graphic novel form （with fabulous illustrations）， make this a delightful， as well as an informative read。 。。。more
Lizzie
，
Fairly interesting。
Maria-Christina Vourda
，
My first graphic novel read and rather enjoyable！ I liked the illustrations。 Regarding what the story is about， I found it informative， funny and relatable。 I loved how the therapist is not perfect and that the reader can see into her thoughts。 The only downside for me was the footnotes/comments in most pages which I found a bit distracting to read along with the story。 What I did was reading the story of each session and then going back to the footnotes in each session。 Worked for me， but other My first graphic novel read and rather enjoyable！ I liked the illustrations。 Regarding what the story is about， I found it informative， funny and relatable。 I loved how the therapist is not perfect and that the reader can see into her thoughts。 The only downside for me was the footnotes/comments in most pages which I found a bit distracting to read along with the story。 What I did was reading the story of each session and then going back to the footnotes in each session。 Worked for me， but others could approach it differently。 So it’s also a flexible read。 。。。more
Allie Scott
，
Disappointing。。。
Lydia
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（Copy is version illustrated by Philippa's daughter， Flo Perry） Really enjoyable and thoughtful introduction to psychotherapy and the therapeutic alliance through illustrations。 （Copy is version illustrated by Philippa's daughter， Flo Perry） Really enjoyable and thoughtful introduction to psychotherapy and the therapeutic alliance through illustrations。 。。。more
Lauren
，
Three stars for content， five stars for gorgeous illustration， averaged out at 4。 As a nosy person， and a person who has had therapy/is interested in therapy， this tickled both those pickles。
Jenny Karpe
，
Red a few years ago
Jo Cameron-Symes
，
This is a really interesting read that follows a single case of therapy from beginning to end in a graphic novel format。
Simina
，
Surprisingly satisfying
Rebecca
，
This graphic novel was a real page turner， I felt like a fly on the wall: really valued the insights gleaned from a year-long process between client and therapist。 Therapy and recognition of mental health has come a long way， but sigma still exists partly because the mind is like a black box， this book makes progress in a humorous way （for a change） and for that I applaud the author！
Adrian
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