Directly inspired by the work of Jerome D. Frank and his field-defining book "Persuasion and Healing," this volume of essays by distinguished contemporary scholars broadly assesses the current state of research and practice in psychotherapy.

Editors Renato D. Alarcon, a former student of Frank's, and Julia B. Frank, Jerome Frank's daughter and coauthor, bring diverse perspectives to the volume. Each chapter, based on one of the themes of Frank's classic book, offers honest critique and fearless criticism of psychotherapy as it has evolved in the twenty-first century. Contributors update classical psychotherapeutic concepts such as demoralization, hope, meaning, rhetoric, and cultural variation and add new insight into how the neuroscience revolution affects our understanding of mental organization and psychotherapy. As Frank did in his own time, these authors challenge the claims made for the specificity or superiority of cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic, and other varieties of psychotherapy, providing a candid assessment of the value and limitations of many competing approaches to diagnosis and treatment. They also focus attention on psychotherapies for special populations, including children, people with serious medical illness, and those from culturally and religiously diverse backgrounds.

Like "Persuasion and Healing, " this volume advocates not for any particular approach but for psychotherapy more generally grounded in principles of evolutionary biology, culture, narrative, and behavior change. It provides researchers, theorists, and practitioners of every kind of training with a genuinely phenomenological approach to a wide range of psychiatric issues. Echoing Frank's voice, in particular his emphasis on the commonalities of suffering and the therapeutic power of hope, "The Psychotherapy of Hope" offers scholarly wisdom and practical advice on how to understand psychotherapy--and apply its principles to the greatest benefit of patients.

The Bartonellas and Peruvian Medicine explores the events surrounding the discovery of the etio-pathogenic agent of the Oroya Fever, also known as Peruvian Verruga or Carrion's disease (an endemic infectious disease in South America's Andean regions) by Dr. Alberto Leonardo Barton. Graciela S. Alarcon and Renato D. Alarcon recount Barton's persistent work against skepticism, obstacles, and limitations imposed by members of Peru's medical elites of the time, as well as his eventual successful scientific career and the delayed but well-deserved global recognition of his contributions. The book is the result of intense bibliographic research and of original documents aimed not just at the examination of Barton's life and work, but also the examination of today's perspectives and future work in the field of infectious and "neglected" diseases. The authors address current scientific information on the relevant bacteria Bartonella bacilliformis, besides current research and clinical status of the other Bartonellas, making it a useful and practical text for those studying infectious diseases.