Poetry Therapy: Theory and Practice - Hardcover

'While the healing value of poetry is undeniable, its clinical applications have tended to be ignored, uncharted, and underestimated-until now. In this remarkable volume, Nicholas Mazza shows convincingly how metaphor, imagery, and language can assuage the thorniest ills, and ameliorate the most surprising forms of dysfunction. Poetry Therapy belongs on every sensitive clinician's desk!' - Kirk J. Schneider , Ph.D., Senior Editor, Handbook of Humanistic Psychology; President, Existential-Humanistic Institute

'Dr. Nicholas Mazza's landmark book on poetry therapy, is a beautifully written and conceived work that is an invaluable guide to sophisticated clinical practitioners who recognized the power of the written word and its potential for healing; its appearance is an occasion for celebration.' - George S. Getzel, D.S.W., Professor Emeritus, Hunter College of the City University of New York

Poetry therapy has been formally recognized as a valuable form of treatment for over thirty years, and has been proven effective worldwide with many diverse clients. Written by a pioneer and consistent leader in the field, Poetry Therapy: Theory and Practice presents a unified model for the effective practice of poetry therapy. Based on his wealth of clinical and theoretical knowledge, Dr. Nicholas Mazza outlines a tripartite system composed of receptive, expressive, and symbolic modes of practice. This text serves as a primary resource for any serious practitioner interested in poetry therapy, bibliotherapy, writing and healing, or the broader area of creative/expressive arts therapies.