Talking of Love on the Edge of a Precipice is a book filled with hope. All of us suffer from trauma in our lives, whether it be a difficult childhood, the end of a love affair, or a violent experience. Yet rather than be controlled by our pain, it is possible for us to grow in the face of our problems and create a new life for ourselves.
In his groundbreaking work on the healing power of resilience, Boris Cyrulnik has created a new way for us to understand ourselves and our pasts. He shows how we are all changed by trauma, but that we can choose either to submit to it as if it were our destiny, or break free and come back to life. The answer lies in making use of our pain and giving it meaning.
Our memories may shape us but, he reveals, we can also shape our memories. Whether it occurs during adolescence, meeting a partner or having children ourselves, resilience comes from modifying our personal histories and how we see ourselves inside – literally remaking our life story. By translating trauma into words, we choose to live again.
Cyrulnik shows us that the journey from hurt to hope may not be easy, but is one we have to choose in order to survive. Ultimately, this book is a celebration of the healing, transforming power of love.
The Senior Commissioning Editor for Penguin Press on Talking of Love on the Edge of a Precipice by Boris Cyrulnik
Recently, while Boris Cyrulnik was waiting for a plane, a young woman approached him to thank him for changing her life. This happens to Boris Cyrulnik a lot (when we went to meet him in Paris earlier this year, we enjoyed being in his presence so much that we missed our train home). He writes about resilience. All of us suffer from trauma in our lives, whether it be a difficult childhood, the end of a love affair, or a violent experience. Yet rather than be controlled by our pain, it is possible for us to grow in the face of our problems and create a new life for ourselves. In his groundbreaking work on the healing power of resilience, Boris Cyrulnik has created a new way for us to understand ourselves and our pasts.
A renowned psychologist who has worked with individuals all over the world, dealing with anti-social teenagers, marriage break-ups, children scarred by warfare, and people with disabilities, Boris Cyrulnik is incredibly resilient himself. Born in France, his parents were deported to the concentration camps during the Second World War. They never returned. His theory of resilience is filled with hope; a new way of imagining ourselves and the world we live in. As such, it has become incredibly influential in Europe, for individuals, governments and international agencies. Hailed as 'the man who saved France', his books remain on bestseller lists across Europe for years at a time. Talking of Love on the Edge of a Precipice - which argues that falling in love is the most important way in which we can remake ourselves after trauma - is the first of his books to be properly published in Britain. We are incredibly excited to be introducing him and his ideas to the UK.
