1. “In My Skin: A Memoir”

My involvement with Alcoholics Anonymous continued, but to a lesser extent.

2. “Scar Tissue”

And my interest in Christianity continued and increased. After several years I began to think more clearly. As a result of my interest i Christianity, I also became interested in the pro-life movement. I become convinced of the horrible injustice that was occurring to the unborn child as well as my personal obligation as an aspiring Christian to do something. He ends his book by revealing that he finally accepts the concept that the reason for his problems has been his deep-seated resentment for his mother - and how he deals with that.

Along the way he offers hi s concepts about alcoholism: They falsely believe and teach that the alcoholic has a disease, and is somehow different bodily form other people. That is all complete nonsense. It is at this point that the memoir challenges the reader's credibility in his story. But this is a transparent revelation of the jail and rehab and court system abuses as well and an examination of all the aspects of treatment for addiction.

And this information is worth knowing and certainly worth reading about in the words of Ted Adamson. His life has been difficult but he seems to have found a religious plateau where he can stand firmly where he hopes to help others. Apr 22, Stephen Windwalker rated it really liked it. There's a free sample today at Kindle Nation Daily , and here's some of what we said about it: Adamson, a former junkie, takes readers on a journey through prison, a Synanon-like program, and A.

On the way, he shows the dark side of treatment and ultimately how he found redemption that none of these places could really offer. Ted currently lives in serenity and has been off drugs for thirty-five years. Dec 21, Debra rated it liked it Shelves: I found this book to be a good view on the true story of what happens during the life of a drug addict. I thought the story was very moving, and felt horrible for the little boy who was abused by his mother. I also feel that it is a sad thing when someone recovering from drug addiction is so discriminated against.

However, I also noticed a lot of errors, and felt that the book was written far too fast and definitely use some editing. There were a lot of repeated phrases. I think there could have I found this book to be a good view on the true story of what happens during the life of a drug addict. I think there could have been a lot more added to the book. But I did find it interesting to hear about what some of the so-called "treatment programs" used to be like.

Thanks for sharing the story with us! Dec 01, Marilyn rated it really liked it Shelves: My daughter gave me this book to read and I really didn't think I would have an interest in it. But this was a good insight into what an addictive personality goes through.

The thoughts and feelings and paranoias that one has before, during and after, is quite revealing. If you are dealing with someone who has an addiction, then you should read this.

Top 16 Addiction Books

It won't help you deal with it, but it will give you a perspective on the inside of what may be going on and give you an idea on how to help, if he My daughter gave me this book to read and I really didn't think I would have an interest in it. It won't help you deal with it, but it will give you a perspective on the inside of what may be going on and give you an idea on how to help, if help is possible.

It is a good read. Dona rated it really liked it Oct 21, Aria Stim rated it liked it Nov 11, Lisa West rated it it was ok Dec 20, Gilli rated it it was amazing Jan 30, Angel rated it it was amazing Nov 09, Java Davis rated it it was amazing Jan 16, Katzen rated it really liked it Apr 22, Jennifer Ware marked it as to-read Oct 27, Kristen marked it as to-read Oct 27, Lorian Jones marked it as to-read Oct 27, Michelle marked it as to-read Oct 27, Pat Parkhurst marked it as to-read Oct 27, Stephanie Cook marked it as to-read Oct 28, Jason Jones marked it as to-read Oct 28, Mark marked it as to-read Oct 28, Carolyn Benton marked it as to-read Oct 28, Joanne marked it as to-read Oct 28, Brenda Knight marked it as to-read Oct 28, Mysterium marked it as to-read Oct 29, Susan Klinke marked it as to-read Oct 29, Emad marked it as to-read Oct 31, Michele marked it as to-read Oct 31, Huston marked it as to-read Oct 31, Ginger Lee marked it as to-read Oct 31, Andrea marked it as to-read Nov 01, Kathy Feltch added it Nov 01, Sharen marked it as to-read Nov 01, Crooked Little Heart by Anne Lamott.

Her mother is a recovering alcoholic still grieving the death of her first husband; her stepfather, a struggling writer, is wrestling with his own demons. And now Rosie finds that her athletic gifts, once a source of triumph and escape, place her in peril, as a shadowy man who stalks her from the bleachers seems to be developing an obsession of his own.

Cruddy by Lynda Barry. The Curse of Lono by Hunter S. But when heart-rending disaster at home brings Marley crashing back down to earth, he is torn between obligation and following his dreams. Diary of an Exercise Addict by Peach Friedman. With refreshing candor she lays bare her relationships with family, friends, and lovers and the repressed desire that finally surfaced as she found her own way back to health.

Dope Sick by Walter Dean Myers. A Love Story by Caroline Knapp. Years before I got sober, Caroline Knapp pulled me into this book with her gorgeous prose. Once I was hooked on her writing, I began to see a reflection of my story in her own. A must read for…anyone. Drunk Mom by J owita Bydlowska. Because when his thirty days are up, he has to return to his same drunken Manhattan life and live it sober. Even Tough Girls Wear Tutus: Far From You by Tess Sharpe.

Only Sophie knows the truth; Mina was deliberately murdered. Ferocity Summer by Alissa Grosso. Scilla Davis is haunted by a horrible accident that she was involved in last summer—a drunken, reckless joyride that ended in tragedy. With her trial looming, an FBI agent approaches Scilla with an offer: And best of all, the poetry that helps forge her identity.

Alcoholics make for unreliable narrators. Which is why no one believes Rachel when she tells the police what she saw that day on the train. But Rachel knows what she saw.


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What was once a way she escaped her insecurity and negativity as a teenager became a means of coping with the anxiety and stress of an impossible workload. Girlbomb provides an unflinching look at street life, survival sex, female friendships, and first loves. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls. Jeanette Wells and her siblings grew up with a father who was charismatic and loving when sober, dishonest and destructive when drunk. Her mother was a loving but mercurial, and the Wells children learned how to fend for themselves.

14 Must-Read Books About Recovery from Addiction

Within months, she was hooked, trapped in a downward spiral that took her from her comfortable home and loving family to the mean streets of an unforgiving city. It was a journey that would rob her of her innocence, her youth — and ultimately her life. The Good House by Ann Leary. This is hands down the most accurate portrayal of what it feels like to be a blackout drinker in denial that I have ever read.

But when Hildy becomes privy to a web of town secrets, her increasingly uncontrollable drinking threatens everything. If you can get this one on audio, I highly recommend it. The Harder They Fall: When she witnesses the murder of her childhood friend at the hands of a police officer, she must reconcile her two different worlds. She reveals to Tancred that her very wealthy father has recently passed away, leaving each of his five children a mysterious object that provides one clue to the whereabouts of a large inheritance.

Willow enlists Tancred to steal these objects from her siblings and solve the puzzle. Hole in my Life by Jack Gantos. In Hole in My Life, Gantos describes how— once he was locked up in a small, yellow-walled cell — moved from wanting to be a writer to writing, and how dedicating himself more fully to the thing he most wanted to do helped him endure and ultimately overcome the worst experience of his life. How I Made it to Eighteen: Stacy hates it there but despite herself slowly realizes she has to face the reasons for her depression to stop from self-destructing.

How to Murder Your Life is an unforgettable, charged account of a young female addict, so close to throwing her entire life away. All we can do is get up, dust ourselves off and keep walking. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese. In the Realm of Hungry Ghost: Close Encounters with Addiction by Dr. Anyone who wants to understand the complex roots of addiction should familiarize themselves with Dr. Mate has worked with drug addicts in some of the most dire straights. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.

It Calls You Back: In the sequel to Always Running , Luis Rodriguez recounts his last days in prison as a teenager and his struggle with heroin addiction, and staying away from the life that put him in prison in the first place. These stories tell of spiraling grief and transcendence, of rock bottom and redemption, of getting lost and found and lost again.

John Barleycorn by Jack London. Junky by William S. He is bright and articulate. Learning Not to Drown by Ann Shinoda. Loving an addict can be just as harrowing as being an addict. How far will the family go to protect someone they love? Lit by Mary Karr. Memoirs about getting sober need at least a dash of humor to be tolerable.

Fortunately, Mary Karr is freaking hilarious and her sobriety memoir has witty, dry pun intended, thank you very much humor on every page. There, in the company of a torture survivor, a lame dog, and other unforgettable characters, Maya Vidal writes her story, which includes pursuit by a gang of assassins, the police, the FBI, and Interpol. In the process, she unveils a terrible family secret, comes to understand the meaning of love and loyalty, and initiates the greatest adventure of her life: The meth epidemic was at its peak in the early aughts, and few places were more affected that rural communities.

Journalist Reding tells the story of Oelwein, Iowa pop. A compassionate portrayal of all those afflicted by a situation increasingly out of their control.

Must-Read Books About Addiction

The Misfortunates by Dimitri Verhulst. A Memoir of Addiction by Elizabeth Wurtzel. After finding literary notoriety with Prozac Nation , Wurtzel penned this memoir about her descent into addiction and path to sobriety. A Love Story , Wurtzel vividly describes the need inherent in addiction—-the unquenchable driving force that that fuels the addiction despite all negative consequences.

A teenage girl gets hooked on drugs and forced into prostitution. The New Jim Crow: The United States has a prison problem. The Night of the Gun by David Carr. NW by Zadie Smith. These Londoners inhabit a complicated place, as beautiful as it is brutal, where the thoroughfares hide the back alleys and taking the high road can sometimes lead you to a dead end.

A band of hobo vampire junkies roam the blighted landscape—trashing supermarket breakrooms, praying to the altar of Poison Idea and GG Allin at basement rock shows, crashing senior center pancake breakfasts—locked in the thrall of Robitussin trips and their own wild dreams. Out of Reach by Carrie Arcos. A teenage girl searches for her missing addict brother. In doing so, she must face painful realities about her family and herself.

Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher. Some thought of her as a princess, others a general, but to me, Carrie Fisher was the darkly comedic recovering addict, mental health advocate.