Anxiety is something that all people experience from time to time but that completely dominates the lives of some people. This is a fascinating study of anxiety that starts by defining anxiety as a pervasive but unfocused state of fear. Rachman, a psychiatrist specializing in psychopathology, uses the first part of the book to discuss theories of anxiety, its effects on attention, perception, emotions, and memory. The second part of the book presents chronic anxiety as the central issue in a wide array of seemingly unrelated phenomena: specific phobias, panic disorders, agoraphobia, obsessive compulsive disorder, health anxiety, social anxiety, and generalized anxiety disorder in which threats to well being are exaggerated and the individual ruminates endlessly over them. There is a chapter devoted to each of these with a section on treatment approaches in each one. There is also a chapter on PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) which can often create chronic anxiety in those who did not previously suffer from it. This is often aggravated by the presence of flashbacks in which the traumatic event is endlessly re-experienced. Treatment options for PTSD are also covered in this chapter. Psychology Press is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)