The novel unfolds in a satirical and amusing atmosphere, without being obscure. From the title on, the text flows smoothly and captivatingly, with the pace gradually picking up and evolving on a novel and well-conceived structure. The voices of the two narrators and their two stories alternate naturally, without any sense of artificiality. One of the protagonists and author is a psychoanalyst who generously invites us into the analysis room. Here, the patients' scents interweave hour by hour, and thoughts, dreams, and emotions flow freely. More importantly, patients lie on the couch with their bodies and stories, and we readers are fortunate to be witnesses to this intimate relationship. The other protagonist is the young and promising manager Adelaide. The narrative of the novel shifts freely between the protagonists' accounts, reality, dreams, and different time dimensions, delving deeper and deeper until reaching the core of the final part. Luca Nicoli and Elisa Ferrari's writing is powerful, providing nourishment and warmth.

In this novel, a complex and rich world is presented. Although it is not as plot-driven as the novels of Irvin Yalom, whose works I have always enjoyed reading in the past.

It covers numerous themes such as life, death, family, illness, suffering, abandonment, love, fear, and trauma. And the most powerful healing force lies in the closeness and care between people.

-- Amazon customer review


First of all, I believe I am like many readers who were attracted by the title, "Tulip". This name aroused my curiosity and led to many... free associations.

Although I am a design enthusiast, at that time I did not think this item (the chair) was particularly "weird" in terms of creativity. It combines perfect lines and style with the delicacy and fragility evoked by the tulip and its slender stem.

It is a symbol or metaphor of perfection, an image of the narcissistic super-ego that troubles us today, the driving force behind the performative society that wants us to be bright, beautiful, "pure", with the basic lines of "flawlessness": to be admired and displayed.

Eero Saarinen, the designer, did not want us to feel this way, but sitting on such a chair, we would feel uncomfortable because the narcissistic super-ego and... the author's mentor, psychoanalyst and colleague (Gino Zucconi, who quotes him in the book's introduction) would say, this is a "concrete device", where what is shown far exceeds what can be maintained internally/contained.

Adelaide is an outstanding professional woman, the deputy general manager of an important advertising company in Milan, especially in the field of visual identity, which is in line with her fragile and unstable identity, built on a pair of dream high heels (Louboutins or Manolo Blahniks) and an impeccable perfect image.

Apart from the high heels, Adelaide also has extraordinary creative intelligence, but she uses this intelligence as a delicate defensive weapon to prevent, resist and control emotional shocks and the fear of interpersonal relationships. Interpersonal relationships are frightening because they are restrictive, addictive, and unstable, and may bring bad surprises and the possibility of being abandoned.

When the fatal question "What is happiness?" emerged in her work, her world suddenly shook. Her world was firmly rooted on the ground, with no space to release emotions and memories. Every step she took was carefully calculated and measured by a stopwatch.

If a person has not experienced pain, has not meditated and paused in pain, has not touched the richness and instability/uncertainty of the inner emotional world, he cannot be "happy".

Nevertheless, Adelaide was forced to accept her history and initial trauma: she was abandoned by a suffering, drug-addicted mother and later adopted by her uncle and his partner: two births, two starts, and the trauma of being abandoned seemed to be reactivated and repeated in the constant pursuit of elusive parents (trying to find a solution). But, as Adelaide herself said, "Life has no single solution", and for the first time she had to "accept an ending", while she "missed the beginning a long time ago".

Perhaps it was time for her to learn to "stand on her own feet", but this time it was different: she was no longer alone. Someone listened to her, served as her "armchair" or a safe little bed, allowing her to start trusting and relying on others.

Luca Nicoli said, "Psychoanalysis" is this model, "it is to stand on solid ground".

Adelaide tried to do so and began a correspondence with the psychoanalyst Ramanini, a relationship composed of questions and answers, but "the answers are to clarify the questions". The reason she chose Dr. Ramanini was that on his website, above the picture of a swing, there was a quote by D. Winnicott: "Psychoanalysis is about two people playing together." It all seemed like a glove, a kind of unconscious embodiment.

We increasingly like Adelaide, who, between the swings, on the "seesaw" of interpersonal relationships and the analytical relationship (even if it was a correspondence relationship), trembled with fear at the moment of losing balance, but she gradually "humanized": she would come down from the "high heels" (not just the real high heels) and run joyfully into a world where she could finally feel that perhaps someone was waiting for her. Now, she could stop in this world because she had learned to pause her thoughts and emotions: her thoughts were no longer "a corridor" where people passed quickly; her running was no longer that of a record-breaker who had to break ever higher goals, but the happy running of that little girl who grew too fast and has now recovered because there was someone who knew how to stand by her side and hold her hand.

We also increasingly like the psychoanalyst Dr. Ramanini, who did not hide behind the walls of theory but truly and deeply showed his humanity, without hiding his doubts, his difficulties, his frustrated ambitions, and those goals that he would pursue at any cost: we recognized ourselves in his passion for psychoanalysis and his profession, yet this passion sometimes made us neglect "life", just as his compassionate supervisor did, whose name, Farabutti, at least aroused curiosity. He spoke in the Roman dialect and kindly reminded him. But do you really understand that a glass of Frascati wine is worth more than all the water in the Tiber? You should enjoy the small things, not chase after the big ones.

Dr. Ramanini asked himself and his supervisor: "How can one not be harmed by this continuous identity appropriation; how can one live hour after hour through everything that each patient forces us to endure?" This is an exciting yet difficult profession that sometimes or often makes us doubt our abilities and feel that our identity is being "appropriated".

All of this makes him a highly human and professionally deep therapist and psychoanalyst who knows how to tell his story sincerely.
As I said at the beginning of this article: perhaps it is no coincidence that when I thought of "tulips", I did not immediately think of the designed chair, my first "free association" and fantasy was a typewriter, and thus also writing and words.

In fact, the greatest merit of Luca Niccoli and his book, which is both instructive and entertaining, well-structured, full of "twists" and humanity, is that it tells those things that are hard to talk about in an easy-to-understand way, the tulips in our souls, those "forgotten places that we try to avoid at all costs for fear of pain", which are the places of analysis, that is, the ability to pause in uncertainty, in our positive or negative emotional turmoil, in pain, in our memories.

The author Dr. Ramanini quotes and explains Bion's view in a simple and understandable way, that is, the ability to digest emotions, fully experience them, and merge with the emotional experience. Bion's "0" is a stronger emotion than reality.

This is psychoanalysis, "talking therapy", not only "through" language but also "with" language (G. Zucchini). Our colleague Luca Nicoletti has successfully conveyed all of this. He knows how to reveal it through a novel that is both profound and "light-hearted". This kind of psychoanalysis is not for "experts", it does not use technical and perfect language, but is light-hearted. Light-hearted does not mean simplistic; rather, it is a fusion of technique, theory and creativity, a free thought, like the notes of a jazz musician who can improvise on the theme because of a solid foundation and preparation.
There are also many surprises and "thematic variations" in the book, as well as a surprising ending.

This is a book I highly recommend reading: you will definitely not be bored. Maybe you will feel a bit like the young Holden, regretfully leaving the author and colleague at the end of the reading. Maybe we will feel that he is a bit like a friend or a companion.

— M. G. Gallo, Review of the Italian Psychoanalytic Association

★ The book won the 2020 “Spirit Soars, Freedom Arrives” (Ingenium Volat, Liber Manet) International Competition's Excellence Award!
★This novel ingeniously interweaves storylines through a dual perspective narrative, exploring complex psychological issues in a light and brisk narrative rhythm, in sharp contrast to the convoluted tales of Irvin Yalom. Through the in-depth interaction between the psychoanalyst and the patient, it not only reveals human vulnerability but also highlights the power of healing. Adelaide, the career elite's inner struggle, reflects the common predicament of modern people.
★The author integrates psychological theories into everyday scenarios, guiding readers to reflect on themselves with a friendly touch. Compared to Yalom's academic expression, it is more likely to resonate with the general public. The entire book offers a fresh perspective to the field of psychoanalysis through an innovative narrative structure, in-depth analysis of human nature, and popularization of professional theories.

Love and fear, two existences are on the verge of collapse, but there is only one antidote.

This is a novel full of irony and oppression. In this work co-created by Luca Nicoli and Elisa Ferrari, what is impressive is its ingenious narrative structure and urgent language style. The work is complex and mysterious, drawing readers into a tortuous and perilous ideological whirlpool, exploring thorny psychological themes without losing its appeal.

Note: "Tulip" refers to the "Tulip Chair" (as shown in the picture), a classic work by designer Eero Saarinen.

Luca Nicoli, psychologist and psychoanalyst, he is a member of the Italian Psychoanalytic Society and the International Psychoanalytic Association. He also serves as an editorial board member of the "Italian Psychoanalytic Journal". Passionate about psychoanalysis, he tirelessly spreads it. He works in Modena as a consultant, psychotherapist and clinical supervisor. He has lectured at universities, master's and specialized schools, and has published many psychological works.