Dr. Burns' Feeling Good (Morrow/Signet) has helped untold thousands of readers, including myself, take charge of their decisions, old and new. Take a few moments to browse this website and meet Phillip Stark, Grey Pine's main character, on his restless journey to deal with his mental distortions, some of them similar to those discussed in Feeling Good.
If you like Dr. Burns' Feeling Good, you will probably be fascinated by Grey Pine, my semi-historical novel set in an Eastern Washington community that reels from a six-inch ash fall from the iconic 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. The resulting havoc exacerbates Phillip Stark's ongoing conflicts with his father and others; his mental state declines to the point that he acts on both suicidal and homicidal thoughts.
Phillip rejects a psychiatrist, a "non-judgmental" counselor, and a third therapist who uses some techniques not unlike those in Feeling Good. Phillip is conflicted between what made sense from the last therapist and his violent impulse to harm his hated next door neighbor.
Phillip's is a case of extreme clinical depression but I believe his story is relevant to readers of Feeling Good who have more typical but nevertheless serious mood problems. Though Grey Pine at first glance can appear to be a grim trip toward the abyss, it makes good use of humor and the story is as much as anything an unearthing of human psychology and perseverance.
Fans of Feeling Good - click here to read free excerpts from Grey Pine