Kiritsis, a clinical psychologist, explores the history, symbology, and modern relevance of the ancient practice of alchemy.

“The word ‘alchemy’ has very powerful connotations,” opens the author, as it evokes images of “potent fizzling panaceas able to cure all ailments” and “medieval maverick men at work in their subterranean laboratories.” A ubiquitous feature of antiquity, examples of alchemy can be found not only in medieval Europe, but in China, India, and Tibet as well. Even the more well-known branch of Western alchemy traces its origins to Ptolemy’s Egypt, a society that blended Greek philosophy and intellectualism with native Egyptian culture and spirituality. The writings of Bolus of Mendes, an esoteric thinker who combined the mathematical philosophy of Pythagoras with a mystical understanding of metallurgy and chemistry, argued that “it was possible to convert one form or substance into another.” This history of alchemy is thoroughly covered in the book’s opening section, which examines the rise of Western alchemy from Hellenistic philosophy through its ascendance in Renaissance Europe and tenuous relationship with Christianity. The book’s second part draws on the approach of Carl Jung, whose classic Psychology and Alchemy (1944) connected the myriad of symbols found in alchemical works to psychological processes. To Jung, alchemy was less about the chemistry of turning lead into gold than it was a metaphor for individuation. The book’s final section explores the potential validity of alchemical theories based on contemporary, empirical science and cutting-edge research that challenges traditional scientific orthodoxy. A licensed medical psychologist with graduate degrees in clinical psychology, history, and English, Kiritsis expertly leads an interdisciplinary exploration of alchemy supported by a solid understanding of history, literature, and modern psychology. This analysis is backed by more than 150 scholarly footnotes that carefully balance astute commentary with an engaging writing style. The book does not overwhelm readers with academic jargon, and the text is accompanied by a wealth of visual aids, from historical drawings to full-color reproductions of art found in illustrated manuscripts. Even skeptics will find much to appreciate in this beautifully crafted work.

A well-written, expertly researched analysis of the history and legacy of alchemy.

A short story collection that offers numerous twists on ancient tales from Greek mythology.

Kiritsis begins with a creation myth, “To Propitiate the Earth,” in which the beginning of one world necessitates the end of another, which priestesses try in vain to stop; the end of the story, however, offers a sliver of hope for the future. This opening work effectively shows the author’s ability to balance the dreamlike elements of myths with a modern-feeling narrative structure. Other stories, such as “A Golden Moment,” about King Midas, and “Eros and Psyche,” about the titular mythic lovers, retell other myths in an entertaining way. “The Therapist” is a creative recasting of the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice, swapping its theme of love to one of horror, and its present-day framing makes the ancient story feel more relatable. “The Magic Room” puts a new spin on the story of Narcissus, imagining him as a scientific experiment who, upon seeing himself for the first time in a mirror, falls in love with himself, despite the mistreatment of those who have created him. “Phantasia: The Story of Proteus” takes a different route, telling a tale of a new sort of god; in it, Kiritsis uses SF and thriller genre elements to develop the concept of a shape-shifting deity. Overall, Kiritsis’ stories are skillfully written and introduce an array of memorable players. Sometimes, the dialogue is more preoccupied with relating concepts than developing characters or moving the plot along, but these conversations are often engaging.

An offbeat and thought-provoking set of mythic narratives.

A scholarly analysis explores the link between psychopathology—in particular, positive schizotypy—and creativity.

As debut author Kiritsis observes, creativity has long been associated with “divine madness” and the inspired artist with tortured insanity. He aims to make the case that there is, in fact, a “connection between the schizospectrum, bipolar, and substance abuse disorders and creativity.” More specifically, the author investigates the possibility that psychosis and creativity “share polygenetic roots” and that “the inner mental processes experienced as delusional beliefs and hallucinations by the inwardly disordered may also be the fountainhead and raw underpinning of creative thought.” Kiritsis focuses on positive schizotypy, which characterizes “highly imaginative” and “internally preoccupied” people who tend to hold beliefs about the world that are unconventionally drawn to the mystical and supernatural. The author furnishes a rigorously synoptic history of schizophrenia and its treatment, including an edifying discussion of the modern tendency to overinterpret it as a “brain disease” and handle it accordingly by pharmaceutical means. He raises provocative questions about the peculiar evolutionary resilience of schizophrenia, which, he argues, suggests that creativity is among its “compensatory advantages.” As Kiritsis points out, his study has “profound clinical and social implications,” not just for the understanding of psychopathology and its treatment, but also as a potential means to disabuse the “profusion of ignorance around mental illness” so common today. Furthermore, the work also points the way to a less idolatrous embrace of “the hegemony of the Western-mind sciences,” which, as a consequence of an unbridled materialism, immediately classifies spiritual experiences as aberrant hallucinations. The book is brimming with haunting images by debut illustrator Christos Stamboulakis, the author’s cousin, and others, many of which depict the struggle with psychosis. Kiritsis’ study is painstakingly argued—he furnishes a model of experimental meticulousness. In addition, the analysis is not just scientifically exacting, but reasonable as well—he draws on both his work as a “burgeoning clinician” and his experiences as an “untutored eyewitness.” The subject matter is drawn from Kiritsis’ doctoral dissertation and often reads precisely like that: long, crashing sentences brimming with gratuitously technical jargon turbidly conveyed. But beneath the topsoil of academic-speak, there is a genuinely intriguing exploration of creativity.

Despite some dense prose, this work offers a stimulating investigation into an important scientific topic.