Book Reviews

Staying alive Staying alive: the psychology of human survival. Roger Walsh. Boulder: NewScience Library 1984 (xix + 124 pp., US$5.95). This little book, by a Queensland graduate who is now a professor of psychiatry at an American university, deals with the woes of the world, and how they might be lessened by improvement in our own psychological well-being. Two forewords, one by the Dalai Lama and the other by Linus Pauling, are a call for world peace. It seems that the book has its origin in the author's first visit to the East and his subsequent research at home on the threat of atomic warfare. Most of us are familiar with the problems of overpopulation and poverty. We know that the world would be a better place if so much of our wealth were not spent on armaments, and we are familiar with descriptions of the devastation that would be caused by nuclear war. So there is little new in all this. The author addresses himself to the problem, "What can I do about it?". The strength of the book lies in a clear exposition of the simple psychological mechanisms which govern the shortcomings of our own interpersonal conflicts. He examines the nature of our belief systems and explains how a defensive attitude can induce a paranoid reaction in others. In quite convincing fashion he applies the same principles to the conflicts of nation with nation, achieving a happy balance between modern psychological concepts and Buddhist philosophy. The text is enlivened and made more readable by the interspersion of numerous short quotations. Walsh shows us how the world would be a better place if we were to manage our lives in better fashion. But the emphasis of the book is on the global situation and the threat of atomic war and, in this respect, there is no clear solution as to how our political leaders could at present stop the arms race. Any writing that makes us more aware of the problems of the world and the consequences of nuclear war serves a useful purpose, particularly when emphasis is placed on individual responsibility. This book, interesting in its way, is better suited to the school library than the physician's bookshelves. AINSLIE MEARES Consultant in Mental Relaxation East Melbourne, VIC 3002