This work is a collection of review articles on postnatal mental illness, which aims to update and supplement the 1982 edition. Topics covered in this edition include the impact of maternal mental illness on the infant and the loss of a baby through stillbirth or neonatal death. Postpartum psychosis is also covered with a further article on its nosology and differentiation from other puerperal mental disorers and the role of biochemical and neuroendocrine dysfunction in postnatal illness is critically examined. There is a review of postnatal depression from a methodological standpoint as well as a consideration of transcultural explanations for it. Finally, a pioneering community-based service for puerperal mental illness is described, with home treatment for puerperal psychotic disorders, including manic syndromes. The book also serves as a progress report on the activities of the Marce Society, an international society dedicated to improving the understanding, prevention and treatment of psychiatric disorders relating to childhood.