I would re-title this book “How to fight with people you love.” In that context, Hanh gives excellent direction. However, these techniques are blind to power inequities and situations where people actively wish to manipulate you or do you harm. Employing these techniques against someone who is a bully or abusive, regardless of how much they are suffering, is a recipe to heap more pain on the targeted person. I can see this book doing real harm in those encounters. Hanh includes no acknowledgement that sometimes the path to peace is acceptance that you cannot change the situation and must pull away to take care of yourself. That said, I think the book does have great utility in teaching one how to deal when friends and loved ones inflict hurt.