Catherine Gildiner is nothing short of masterful--as both a therapist and writer. In these pages she has gorgeously captured both the privilege of being given access to the inner chambers of people's lives and the meaning that comes from watching them grow into the selves they were meant to be.--Lori Gottlieb New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk toCatherine Gildiner is nothing short of masterful--as both a therapist and writer. In these pages she has gorgeously captured both the privilege of being given access to the inner chambers of people's lives and the meaning that comes from watching them grow into the selves they were meant to be.--Lori Gottlieb New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone In this fascinating narrative therapist Catherine Gildiner's presents five of what she calls her most heroic and memorable patients. Among them: a successful first generation Chinese immigrant musician suffering sexual dysfunction; a young woman whose father abandoned her at age nine with her younger siblings in an isolated cottage in the depth of winter; and a glamorous workaholic whose narcissistic negligent mother greeted her each morning of her childhood with Good morning Monster.Each patient presents a mystery one that will only be unpacked over years. They seek Gildiner's help to overcome an immediate challenge in their lives but discover that the source of their suffering has been long buried.As in such recent classics as The Glass Castle and Educated each patient embodies self-reflection stoicism perseverance and forgiveness as they work unflinchingly to face the truth. Gildiner's account of her journeys with them is moving insightful and sometimes very funny. Good Morning Monster offers an almost novelistic behind-the-scenes look into the therapist's office illustrating how the process can heal even the most unimaginable wounds.(less)