New Release

by Jim Henson

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"Pee up a Tree is authentically Jim Henson -- my former boss. It's inventive, irreverent and therapeutically wise. The characters of Jim's early life in rural community mental health in Oregon are singular and memorable; the trials and triumphs worthy of cheering. This is one man's journey of service through parenting, teaching and healing, acts the world needs more of. Enjoy!"

Jane Kirkpatrick, bestselling award-winning author of All Together in One Place and A Flickering Light

Pee Up A Tree: A Mental Health Memoir by Jim Henson

With an early 1970s setting in Oregon’s Umpqua River valley, this book shares the courage, wisdom, humor and folly of ordinary people through the extraordinary lens of a youthful mental health professional.

Author Jim Henson draws upon 40 years of professional experience as a clinical social worker in the process of illuminating the lives of clinic employees and the individuals and families they served.

The readers of this book will enjoy this unique opportunity to be observers inside the community, inside the clinic and inside the personal connections between client and clinician.

Think Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon or James Herriot’s Yorkshire countryside and you are almost there.

"I have worked in community-based programming for over thirty years. It is hard work. It requires patience, respect for those you are trying to serve, and a clear focus on the community or client’s definition of the problem. It requires the willingness to spend the time and energy necessary to form quality relationships and it requires a high degree of skilled professionalism. The stories in this memoir illustrate all of these concepts. What the stories most illustrate however is that a key requisite is the ability to have fun while valuing the effort required. Whatever your reasons for picking up Jim Henson’s memoir, what you will find most worthwhile is the sense of enjoyment and of fulfillment that comes when community based programming is done well. You can expect to find good humor, good will, a healthy dose of common sense and a very good read." ....Mary Lee Fitzsimmons PhD, From the Forward to Pee Up a Tree: A Mental Health Memoir

READER'S COMMENTS

Pee Up A Tree: A Mental Health Memoir by Jim Henson

Pee up a Tree is authentically Jim Henson -- my former boss. It's inventive,
irreverent and therapeutically wise. The characters of Jim's early
life in rural community mental health in Oregon are singular and memorable;
the trials and triumphs worthy of cheering. This is one man's journey
of service through parenting, teaching and healing, acts the world needs
more of. Enjoy! Jane Kirkpatrick, bestselling award-winning author of
Homestead:Modern Pioneers Pursuing the Edge of Possibility.

I finished reading your book. What a pleasure! I'm glad you wrote it,
I'm glad I had a chance to read it, and I hope a whole lot of other people read
it too. It is a terrific look at what community mental health is all about, and
what a talented practitioner does in such a setting.
I'm tremendously impressed by two-no, three traits that suffuse the
book: your cheerful self-confidence, your remarkable sense of curiosity, and
your intuitive gift for saying the right thing to people in crisis. I guess I'm
only one in a long line of folks who think you're really good at what you do.
Ron Moline, MD, Board Certified Psychiatrist

There are some wonderful personalities in that book and so many wonderful
stories. You brought them all to life.
It reminded me again what a gifted therapist you are–that lightening
quick perceptiveness and ability to hone in on the essence of someone or
a situation, and to articulate it with warmth and gentle humor. I envy that.
Will there be a sequel? I hope so, and look forward to reading it. Barbara
Moline, LCSW, Oak Park, Illinois

I loved the Book!!!
I'm glad I talked to you when I was part way though your wonderful
memoir "The Early Years". As I said, the book made me feel as if you were
present, the Jim I know and love, the constant in my life for over 12 years!
Wow...
A client