Sisters of the Shadow

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

In her Jungian-based study of today's homeless women, Washington, D.C., clinical psychologist Harris finds that, like her hapless street sisters, every woman harbors in her psyche an unrecognized or denied ``shadow'' of a potential ``victim, exile, rebel or predator.'' Each type of female outcast is illustrated in the individual stories of homeless women, many of whom are not only estranged from society and from their inner selves but are in need of psychiatric treatment. The author suggests that recounting their experiences--both victimization and dreams--is a first therapeutic step in helping them to recover their identities and integrate their psyches preparatory to rejoining the community. Female readers, she stresses, may also benefit from recognizing their kinship with these women. (May)

Booknews

Thoughtful and independent essays by 12 Mormon women on a religion not notable for its interest in women's wishes. Harris is a clinical psychologist who focuses here on homeless women, developing a psychological and metaphoric understanding of the role they play in the lives of all women as symbols of the self that is rejected or denied. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)