Name: Blake's Therapy
ISBN: 9781583224793

Ariel Dorfman

Blake's Therapy

Sarah Sammis

Although Blake's Therapy is a short book it is one that needs pondering over. It is difficult to discern reality and truth among the conflicting narrative voices. The book opens with a lecture from an unnamed therapist who proclaims that we are here to help Graham Blake. What follows is what appears to be the therapy where Blake, a CEO of a huge multinational company is at the verge of a breakdown and must learn to weigh his power over the personal comfort and freedom of his employees. From there things get sketchy: are the people Blake is interacting with real or just actors? Has his therapy ended by the close of the book? The last chapter is a report from our unnamed therapist to Blake's ex-wife but the details here are still fuzzy.

If you enjoy clear cut plots and well defined characters, Blake's Therapy isn't for you. If however you like to be challenged and enjoy stories with multiple realities, then I recommend Blake's Therapy to you. In terms of tone and general themes, the novel reminds me of the Argentine film Hombre mirando al sudeste (1986). If you haven't seen the film, then I recommend a weekend combo of watching the film and reading this book.

Blake's Therapy

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