BOOK REVIEWS

Quality of Life in Mental Disorders. Edited by HEINZ

KATSCHNIG, HUGH FREEMAN and NORMAN SARTORIUS.

Wiley, Chichester, 1997.

This book represents a comprehensive collection of24 articles addressing the issues of the assessment andmeasurement of quality of life in mental disorders. Thereare six sections, which address a variety of aspectsof quality of life, including issues of measurements,concepts and speci®c mental health problems.

The de®nition, measurement and assessment ofquality of life in mental health problems is a complextask and presents many methodological and practicalchallenges. This book tackles these issues in a throughand critical manner. The chapters are well written andpresent the issues in a manner which is appropriate both

for a general and a specialist readership. There is somerepetition of conceptual and methodological problems,but this is perhaps inevitable given the need to set eachchapter within its own context. The chapter on mentalhealth problems in the elderly is less well articulated,suggesting that the issues of quality of life in this arenaare less well developed than in the arena of schizo-phrenia for example.I would recommend the book to all those who are

involved in the care of people with mental healthproblems, especially those involved in long-stay andcommunity care. It is a well-written and comprehensivecollection of essays: a most informative read.

KATE M. BENNETT

De Montfort UniversityLeicester

CCC 0885±6230/98/100736±02$17.50# 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY

Int. J. Geriat. Psychiatry 13, 736±737 (1998)

A Life Worth Living: Practical Strategies for ReducingDepression in Older Adults. PEARL M. MOSHER-ASHLEY

and PHYLLIS W. BARRETT. Health Professions Press, 1997.No. of pages: 377.

As with so many terms in psychiatry, the word`depression' means di�erent things to di�erent peopleat di�erent times, and its use, particularly in a book title,places a demand on the authors for de®nition at theoutset. Drs Mosher±Ashley and Barrett, Professors ofPsychology and English respectively, acknowledge this intheir introduction, and stress that their strategies apply tothe treatment of depressive symptoms in elderly peoplewho do not necessarily meet the criteria for depressiveillness as such. Indeed, they point out that the inter-ventions described are designed primarily for individualsexperiencing mild depression.

Eleven types of non-drug therapy are describedin considerable detail, ranging from the well knownand commonly employed (cognitive-behavioural andreminiscence therapy) to the unusual (animal-assistedtherapy). Each intervention is allocated its own chapter

and includes sample forms for planning goals andevaluating progress, which give the treatments anadmirably structured character. Appendices at the endof each chapter provide a wealth of information onrelevant associations and sources of tools and furtherdata, though most of these will be more relevant toAmerican readers.Many of the strategies described appear more suited

to enhancing the lives of non-depressed older peoplein residential care or at home, for example followingretirement. The book is least strong in its discussionof psychiatric symptomatology and classi®cation, therelevant chapter containing at least two inaccuracies.The potential readership for this inspiring book is

large, and I would recommend it particularly to nurses,occupational therapists and social workers caring forolder adults, with or without psychiatric illness, at homeor in residential accommodation, as well as sta� workingin these facilities.

TIM STEVENS

University College London Medical School

Geriatric Psychopharmacology. Edited by J. CRAIG

NELSON. Marcel Dekker, New York, 1998. No. ofpages: 488. Price $175.

Don't be discouraged by this book's apparent austerity.It is clinically orientated and very readable. Basic science

is mainly restricted to rather useful introductory chapterson the neurochemistry of ageing, pharmacokinetics anddrug interactions. The remainder of the book deals withthe pharmacological treatment of psychiatric disordersmost prevalent in the elderly. Appropriate emphasisis given to speci®c problems arising from coexisting