Description:
Ghosts of the Unremembered Past is a suspenseful story of a young boy growing up in a family shaped by intrusion, loss, and tragedy and of that same boy, as a young adult, seeking help from a gifted psychoanalyst. The juxtaposition of the protagonist's childhood and early adulthood highlights the crippling effects of emotional isolation and the transformative power of relational connection. It is, above all, a story of hope, though sobered by recognition of the inevitability of the pain and loss that accompanies the process of remembering the past so that its ghosts may be finally laid to rest.
Brief description: Tom Wooldridge is a psychoanalyst, board-certified psychologist, and Associate Professor of Psychology at Golden Gate University. He is also Faculty at the Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California, the Northern California Society for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, and an Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of California, San Francisco's Medical School. He has published numerous journal articles and two books. This is his first novel.
Review Quotes:
'Ghosts of the Unremembered Past', a slim volume, reveals many surprises. Tom Wooldridge, in this compelling family drama, conveys some of the most profound psychological struggles we experience as we try to negotiate childhood, adolescence and adulthood. Using simple, convincing language, he draws the reader into experiences of trauma, tragic losses and confusion, and the thoughtfulness and kindness needed to face and begin healing these pains. A remarkable first novel.
Paul Williams, Psychoanalyst and author of 'The Fifth Principle', 'Scum', and 'Invasive Objects: Minds Under Siege'