Oliver James trained and practised as a child clinical psychologist, and since 1987 has worked as a writer, journalist and television documentary producer and presenter. His books include Juvenile Violence in a Winner-Loser Culture and the best-selling Britain on the Couch which was also a successful documentary series for Channel 4. He is a trustee of two children's charities, the National Family and Parenting Institute and Homestart.

'A classic. An absolute, slam-dunk tour-de-force guaranteed to make you think more deeply than ever about what made you who you are. Oliver James gets us to prise open all the cobwebbed cupboards of our lives and teaches us how to dust down and tidy up the mess we find inside ... It may be the most frightening book since The Shining, but it's also the most helpful since the Highway Code' Jeremy Vine 'With fascinating case studies from Prince Charles to Jeffrey Archer, this accessible book explains how our childhood experiences dramatically shape our lives' Daily Mail 'He presents some compelling evidence for his case in this popular examination of recent research into how we develop ... An interesting read' Irish Times 'Taking Larkin's words as a starting point, psychologist Oliver James looks at what makes us what we are and argues forcibly in favour of nurture, claiming that how we are cared for during early childhood is the fundamental factor' Daily Express

Oliver James trained and practised as a child clinical psychologist, and since 1987 has worked as a writer, journalist and television documentary producer and presenter. His books include Juvenile Violence in a Winner-Loser Culture and the best-selling Britain on the Couch which was also a successful documentary series for Channel 4. He is a trustee of two children's charities, the National Family and Parenting Institute and Homestart.

'A classic. An absolute, slam-dunk tour-de-force guaranteed to make you think more deeply than ever about what made you who you are. Oliver James gets us to prise open all the cobwebbed cupboards of our lives and teaches us how to dust down and tidy up the mess we find inside ... It may be the most frightening book since The Shining, but it's also the most helpful since the Highway Code' Jeremy Vine 'With fascinating case studies from Prince Charles to Jeffrey Archer, this accessible book explains how our childhood experiences dramatically shape our lives' Daily Mail 'He presents some compelling evidence for his case in this popular examination of recent research into how we develop ... An interesting read' Irish Times 'Taking Larkin's words as a starting point, psychologist Oliver James looks at what makes us what we are and argues forcibly in favour of nurture, claiming that how we are cared for during early childhood is the fundamental factor' Daily Express