 Hello and welcome to Mitt TV and with me is Avery's Bob Cook and we're on book review number seven. So yeah, so Bob, which book are you going to review today? I'm going to review Mark Widderson's book which came out in 2010 called Transaction Analysis 100 Key Points and Techniques. And am I right in thinking that Mark Widderson was a former student of Manchester Institute for Psychotherapy? No, he was a former student of Ian Stewart at the Burn Institute. Right, that's probably where I've got my wires crossed. Yeah, of course Ian Stewart was the co-writer of one of the seminal texts, wasn't he, of TA Today? Yeah, 1989. So writer with an impeccable heritage. So what does this book tell us, Bob? Well, it takes over from the Ian Stewart TA Today book, which came out in 1989, though it was revised many times. This is written in 2010, so it's right up to date. And it goes through all the major concepts of Transaction Analysis. Wonderful book for the lay reader, but also for the students. And it's the first year textbook at our institute. It's one we recommend. It has exercises with all the different chapters. It's very accessible. All the students I know have read it. It's a very easy book to read and very much like it. I think it's probably taken over from TA Today. I'm sure Ian Stewart might dispute that, but it's certainly a book that is recommended by all trainers. For students to read. So I mean, the Ian Stewart book and Van Jonnes book was the text book to have for any student, wasn't it? So what you're saying is this book's really, it may be some dispute, but in your view it's kind of taking over. It's a must have text if you're a student. I think in some ways it's, you know, it's maybe more even more accessible to read. But it certainly is written, you know, right up to date brings us up to date with the relational school and transaction analysis. Brings us up to date with the co-created school and transaction analysis. And brings us right up to the, you know, the 21st century. And Mark Wooderson is a very fluid writer, very articulate. And it's a book that I think all students will buy. Yes. I think in five, six years time when they've graduated, they're still going to have this book in their bookshelf. So it's one that they can carry on into their practice time and into their qualified years, one they may refer to again and again. Yeah, they're useful. There are essays I've used when they graduate and it's a very, very quick book to sort of thumb, thumb through if you like to find those concepts that people like. It's not a book that you would read, say all that one go. No, it's a book that you'd come back to. This is a book you put down and come back later when you want to look at a particular concept. It's explained well. And as I said, I would recommend it wholeheartedly to anybody who wants to know TA, but more importantly or as importantly anyway, to students who want to look in depth a bit further into the nuances of transaction analysis. This is a great book. Yeah, so a good reference book, not one that you would read from cover to cover, but one you might dip in and out of. Like a lot of academic books, you start at the back in the index and work your way in. That's right. And it's academic, you're right, but it's also accessible. It's very accessible to read. It's quite linear in terms of concepts. What my students like is, as I said, it brings TA into the modern era. And it's a book that you wouldn't do without and it wouldn't be on your shell. It would not not be on yourself if you're a student TA. It's certainly a reference book to have. And I recommend it wholeheartedly. And again, as I said, if you want to look more in detail, the actual workings of a modern transaction analyst and the theories behind it, this is a book to buy. Okay, what we'll do is we'll put a picture up at the end so people can have a look and see for themselves. We'll put a link in the bar below so people can click on and find out more about it. But certainly one that's recommended reading at the institutes and one on your bookshelf, Bob. He's on my shelf. And Mark Whittiston, of course, went on to write a well-known book on depression from a transaction analyst's point of view. He's an avid writer and TA. And his name people probably know about. Have a look at it. It's paperback as well. So it's not that inexpensive. I think it's probably about 15 pounds. You'll get it the cheapest second hand. I know it's seven years ago now. But it really is a goodbye for people who wanted to know about transaction analysis. Yeah, so certainly want to have a new bookshelf if you're a student or a qualified practitioner, what you can refer to again and again. It sounds like an essential read in the TA world, Bob. I think so. Yeah, put it on your bookshelf. Right. Well, on that final note from Bob, those wise words, put it on your bookshelf, Bob Cook. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Willie. Bye-bye.