The Thief of Happiness is the story of a sevenyear therapy between the author and the mysterious Dr. Sing-a therapy that was part cult of two, part enchantment, and part love story. In an age when the great and subtle gifts of therapy are downplayed in favor of psychopharmacology, Friedman has written the most detailed and vivid portrayal yet of what actually goes on between therapist and patient.
“Compulsively readable.” -Francine Prose, O: The Oprah Magazine
“[S]trangely profound. . . . [an author] with a great eye for detail.” -Joshua Wolf Shenk, The Washington Post
“[E]xcellent in the way H.D.’s [Tribute to Freud] is: it illuminates the intricate, murky relationship between therapy and real life. . . . Friedman is at her best when relaying the delicately nuanced exchanges that occur between the patient and therapist. . . . The book could, like Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird, develop a cult following.” -Publishers Weekly
“The memoir is sometimes dismissed as a genre for the self-absorbed and self-pitying, yet The Thief of Happiness is neither. . . . An impressive accomplishment and a fine addition to the existing literature on therapy.” -Carmela Ciuraru, Forward