By Lara Newton with a foreword by Linda S. Leonard
This exciting new book lays the foundation for a new psychological perspective on the brother-sister relationship. Lara Newton explores the psychological meaning of the brother-sister connection in all its variety, both externally in the world of inter-personal and cultural relationships and internally in the relationship between conscious and unconscious, masculine and feminine. Working with brothers and sisters in fairytales, myths and true-life stories, she describes a psychological experience of union with, and faith in, one’s own inner life, which evolves when we face the challenge of integrating the archetypal brother-sister pair.
“Lara and her brother John in 1952” (left) and
“Lara’s son and daughter, Jack and Madeleine, in 2006” (right)
“Brother-sister relationships have not been nearly as popular in clinical thinking as mothers and fathers, so this book comes as an important contribution to a too-neglected area. The writing is clear, the material and ideas are fresh, and as both a Jungian analyst and a sister, Newton brings keen insight and the immediacy of experience to her subject. It deserves to be read, used, and enjoyed.”
– Lyn Cowan, Ph.D., author of Portrait of the Blue Lady: The Character of Melancholy
“An extremely important book that investigates the archetypal foundations of relational knowledge. Exploring the fascinating world of myth, fairytale and dream, Lara Newton renders transparent underlying patterns of the brother/sister relationship that determine fundamental attitudes to our parents, sexuality, marriage, and offspring. Reading this seminal work, we are provided with a rare opportunity to understand in deeper ways the mystery of human relationship and the redeeming joy of companionship. The brother/sister archetypal pair bears a message of hope to men and women searching for a relationship of love, mutuality and equality.”
– John Hill, M.A., Jungian analyst International School of Analytical Psychology Zurich, Switzerland
“Because we focus so automatically on child-parent bonds, we frequently miss the developmental, character-building, and life-sustaining significance of brother-sister bonds. This book corrects our oversight. Lara Newton shows us the inner strengths and fateful challenges mediated by our “sibling-other,” and she brings us new insights and new territory for ongoing conversations about brothers and sisters.”
– Donald Williams, M.A., Vice-President, Inter-Regional Society of Jungian Analysts