Kenneth M. Adams (1)

This book was suggested to me in a forum for Adult Survivors of Child Abuse. The author seems more familiar with male victims of covert incest, and tends to focus on victims dealing with addictions. It's also a very short work - more an overview of what covert incest is than a thorough examination of it. That all being said, it is a good, basic overview. I'm neither male, nor dealing with an active addiction, but still saw myself in this book. That it's a short work becomes an advantage - a show more victim in denial might not be willing to read a longer work, but may well see themselves in this one.

I prefer to find suggestions and ideas for recovery in books aimed at adult children of abuse/neglect/dysfunction, which this book is light on. There are suggestions, but they're almost too vague to be helpful. However, this book would be a good place to start for someone looking into the topic of covert incest. show less

Mother-enmeshment manifests itself in many ways. For some, it can be an inability to commit to another relationship without feeling like mother is being betrayed. For others it manifests itself as perpetual adolescence, addictions, or in other ways. Adams, a psychologist, shows how the men can overcome enmeshment and how parents and partners can help. The book probably relied a bit too much on cases to make the points although gray "sidebars" did sometimes summarize points. Overall I did not show more find the book that useful as too much of it was common sense. I really felt the subtitle was not fulfilled within the pages. The author relied too much on suggesting professional counseling, while acknowledging that not all counselors would be helpful, and which is not always a financially feasible option for the persons. show less