Reviews with content warning for Cursing - Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life

I listened to the audiobook and it felt like every other sentence included the F word. I know Christie was really frustrated with her life but it got annoying hearing the same thing over and over again. However, I'm glad she found help in her life and that Group worked for her! Just not my kind of book.

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joajean's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

3.0

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sleeson's review against another edition

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dark sad slow-paced

2.0

I didn’t really understand or grasp the point of this book. Lots of swearing and graphic details about sex and odd therapy. It was not my cup of tea.

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ashleynewman's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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amandalorianxo's review against another edition

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tense slow-paced

2.0

Let me preface this by saying that I have gone to therapy. I didn't do group therapy but I'm familiar with the experience of talking about the deepest, most vulnerable parts of yourself to someone who has no idea what your background / history is like unless you tell them straight up. I came across this book with low expectations and I'm glad I did. The manner in which this therapist did his treatments sounds made me raise my eyebrows. Plus - it seemed as if the author herself had a lot of trauma that needed more than just therapy to sift through the uncomfortable thoughts/ideas / low self-esteem. I also (not to sound mean but) truthfully - I was .... unmoved by some of the background that Tate told us about her life. I listened to this on my commute to work and back & found myself wanting to listen to something else more than half the time. Overal... I don't think this is the best book to choose if you are contemplating therapy.

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fawns's review against another edition

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fast-paced

3.0

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kelly_e's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

3.25

Title: Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life
Author: Christie Tate
Genre: Nonfiction - Memoir
Rating: 3.25 stars
Pub Date: October 27 2020

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

T H R E E • W O R D S

Emotional • Raw • Unconventional

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Having just been named the top student of her law class and having control over her disorder eating, Christie Tate couldn't figure out why she was fantasizing about her own death. Group is Christe's memoir recounting her journey through group therapy and a group of stranger what would change her life forever.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I want to start out by saying I understand there is much controversary surrounding this book, from ethical boundaries to privilege to oversharing, there are certainly issues here that deserve to be recognized and discussed. At times the book left me feeling extremely uncomfortable in some of the therapy practices used and the disclosure of personal information of some of the author's groupmates.

Controversary aside, I have to commend the author for staring vulnerability in the face and sharing her story. I certainly hope the process of writing it was therapeutic in itself. What I personally want to take away from this is the power of connection. When Christie started group, all she wanted was to be 'fixed' but what she will learn is the need to put in hard work, all the time knowing her groupmates will always be there to support her through whatever goes on in her life.

If this book can do anything, I hope it is that it helps normalize therapy and helps remove the stigma surrounding mental health. Therapy, though proven beneficial, remains inaccessible to many for both financial and shame culture reasons.

If you do decide to embark on the journey of reading this book, keep it mind it must be taken with a grain of salt. After reading reviews and more about the author, I've come to question whether the content truthful or not. In no way is this an accurate portrayal of what group therapy always looks like or is like for everyone.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• book clubs

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"You don't need a cure. You need a witness."

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