Every Family Has a Story：How We Inherit Love and Loss

With her usual warmth and wisdom, bestselling psychotherapist Julia Samuel explores the family: what we inherit and how we can change.

Relationships fundamentally influence our health and happiness—and family is the only relationship we cannot leave, however much we might like to. And yet we often think too narrowly about the impact of our families on our lives.

Every Family Has A Story sees bestselling psychotherapist Julia Samuel turn from her work with individuals to her sessions with a wide variety of families, revealing how deeply we are influenced by them. Diving into eight case studies, she analyzes a range of common issues, including separation, step-relationships, leaving home, trauma and loss. These insights inform her 12 touchstones for family wellbeing—from fighting productively, to making time for rituals; from setting boundaries, to allowing difference—equipping us with valuable tools to become better family members.

Revealing acts of forgiveness and learning amidst trauma and hardship, Samuel offers universal insights into how families can face challenges together, providing an honest and compassionate meditation on what we inherit, and how we can create the families we wish for.