A Book Review of The Emotionally Vatile Mother by Beverly Barton

You're passionate about your work but emotionally unstable; you get upset easily, have a negative reaction to even the smallest things, and you tend to be highly critical of others who aren't as lucky as you are. She sketches two contrasting characters - a highly emotional paralegal who avoids most arguments and is unapproachable; and a highly logical nuclear scientist who thinks logically about everything and is almost to the point of being arrogant; both of whom would not be out of place at all in her books or stories. Anna Pigeon displays a wealth of emotionally stable characters with complex personalities in her acclaimed book Emotionally Volatile. The readers will feel deeply connected to these two because each character has a unique quality, is dealing with a unique set of circumstances, and faces difficult challenges, which are all part and parcel of the daily life faced by every human being.


Anna Pigeon's debut novel Emotionally Volatile picks up after the events in No Ordinary Family, a book which established Anna Pigeon as one of the leading authorities on family dynamics and the psychological effects that your culture can have on your emotions, personality, feelings, behaviors, ideas, and mannerisms. Pigeon takes a different approach to the psychological problems faced by individuals and examines more than one aspect of emotional volatility, family dynamics, and cultural success. In each chapter, a new set of questions and some fresh insights into emotional volatility is presented to help the reader understand and cope with their own personal experiences. Each chapter ends with a chapter devoted to the reader's self-development activities.

Emotionally Volatile traces the path of three generations of Pigeon sisters, and asks how the dynamics of the home and surrounding environment affects the sisters' emotional well-being and sense of personal worth, as well as how the environment itself affects their behavior. The book seeks to give a voice to the voiceless. It seeks to give individuals a window into their own psyche to understand the dynamics of their world and how they handle it.

Emotionally Volatile traces the changes in the family dynamic during the years when Rosemary and Ruth Pigeon were married, when their daughter Charlotte became the center of attention in the Pigeon household, and when Rosemary started a new job. The Pigeons had always seemed to manage their emotions relatively easily, so any shifts in their emotional state were not as surprising to them as to others. They never worried that another child would pick up the lopsided nature of their home, or that their daughter might develop an unhealthy relationship with her stepfather. They took all of the obvious steps for coping with their emotions, such as taking care of themselves physically and emotionally, maintaining healthy relationships with their friends and family, and dealing with social situations that caused stress.

Unfortunately, all of these efforts did not save the Pigeons from emotional chaos. Inevitably, the couple's social life unravels, and they start to engage in destructive behaviors that cause them to feel helpless and out of control. As emotions become more acute, a sense of abandonment grows, and they are unable to move on their own. In Emotionally Volatile, Rosemary Pigeon shares insight into her own behavior in this area, and provides practical advice for others who may be struggling to manage their emotions. A book that teaches you how to effectively communicate your feelings and keep your loved ones close is invaluable to everyone who has had a difficult time communicating their feelings or managing their emotions in the past.

One thing that I noticed about this book, which is similar to many books I've read on the subject, is that Rosemary Pigeon repeatedly emphasizes how important it is to learn to express anger in a healthy way. She talks about the "fen" and how it can be dangerous. She discusses how angry people can destroy relationships. And she even touches on the topic of divorce, but she doesn't go far enough in the book to recommend getting a divorce if you are having problems at home. Rather, the book helps you learn some effective communication skills to improve your relationships.

In terms of treatments, The Emotionally Vatile Mother will most likely not teach you any new skills for handling difficult situations. Instead, it is a book that is meant to help you figure out how you're managing your feelings and putting them into perspective, so that you can be more comfortable with your relationships and work throughout them to achieve the goals you have set. In my opinion, that is a valuable component to this book, which will help people to understand their own emotional volatility and be able to use it productively in their lives.

Overall, The Emotionally Vatile Mother is a good book to read for anyone who suffers from an emotional explosion. It will teach you some powerful techniques to help you manage your emotions and keep them under control. But just like with any book, don't expect this one to cure your problems. However, if you need to take a breather and re-ground yourself, then The Emotionally Vatile Mother book will do that for you.