Absent: School Refusal as an Expression of Disturbed Family Relationships

There has now been much work on school refusal, but this book is welcome , as the problem is discussed with the general practitioner in mind. Clyne feels that the family doctor is the appropriate agent of treatment for the parents and for children whose disturbance in relationships is reflected in non-attendance at school. This book is clearly written, well produced and the theme logically developed. There is a discussion of the part that school in general plays in the child's development and a lucid account of school refusal and its differentiation from other forms of absence. Clyne continues by elaborating on the pathology , the epidemiology and the clinical symptomatology. The relationships between the child, his parents, and the doctor are examined, with a full account of the treatment, prognosis and prevention of school refusal. There is a scholarly examination of previous works and a full account of Clyne's own ample case material and his intervention based on psychoanalytic principles. It is recommended to all who meet the problem.