Helm Meade, Erica.

Tell It By Heart: Women and the Healing Power of Story.

First Printing. Chicago / La Salle, Open Court, 1995. 15 x 22.5cm. (8), 277 pages. Original softcover. Very good condition with only minor signs of wear, including bumping to corners and some text annotations. [A Dreamcatcher Book].

In a marvelous melding of personal narrative, myth, and psychology, professional storyteller and counselor Meade, who uses myths and fairy tales in therapy, discusses not only how a story’s meaning can reflect a person’s life struggle, but also how the process of storytelling and story listening is itself revelatory. In each of the extended case studies that make up this book, we see the way story functions to reveal inner sorrows and then heal them. In one case, a mother and daughter, estranged as a result of unacknowledged incest, are found to be enacting the myths of merciful Kuan Yin and tempestuous Pele, respectively, and only through each woman’s finding the other’s goddess within herself can healing occur. In another, a middle-aged woman finally releases her multiple griefs by engaging with an American Indian tale about Coyote and Eagle and, in the process, finally finding the strength to quit smoking. As compelling as short stories, these case histories are moving testimonials to the powers of story in alliance with therapy. [From Booklist]

• Keywords: Catalogue Three – Literature by Women · Chuck Kruger Cape Clear Collection · Folk Stories · Folklore · Mythology · Myths · Psychology · Psychotherapy · Therapy
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9780812693027
• Inventory Number: 91475AB

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