Addicted: Notes from the Belly of the Beast
by Lorna Crozier (Editor), Patrick Lane (Editor)
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Description
Is addiction a disease, a sin, a sign of hypersensitivity, a personal failing, or a unique resource for the creative mind? However it is defined, addiction can have devastating consequences, often shattering lives, sundering families, causing impoverishment, and even triggering suicide. Yet it can also be a source of inspiration. In these frank essays, leading American and Canadian writers explore their surprisingly diverse personal experiences with this complex phenomenon, candidly show more recounting what happened when alcohol, heroin, smoking, food, gambling, or sex -- sometimes in combination -- took over their lives. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I might have given this book 5 stars, but for the fact that one of two of the essays didn't hold up against the undeniably terrific ones. Almost all are wrenching and brutally candid. David Adams Richards piece, simply entitled "Drinking" is worth the price of the book. Patrick Lane's "Counting the Bones", Molly Jong-Fast's "Junkie Grows Up" and Lois Simmie's "An Open Letter to Laura" might be required reading for anyone thinking about recovery. Stephen Reid's "Junkie", the last essay in the book is scalding and terrible, and all the more so since as recently as 2011 Reid was back in the throes of his addiction, and back in the slammer. One essay sounds as though it's steeped in the author's denial, and although it's ironically tragic, show more it also struck an off-key note for me. I won't mention which essay I think that is, but will allow readers to make their own conclusions.
All in all, a solid anthology for those of us who take comfort in knowing we are not alone in our struggles with addiction. The essays which indicate the authors are now in healthy recovery offer hope, while the others act as cautionary tales. show less
All in all, a solid anthology for those of us who take comfort in knowing we are not alone in our struggles with addiction. The essays which indicate the authors are now in healthy recovery offer hope, while the others act as cautionary tales. show less
very honest, terrible stories.
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Author Information
Lorna Crozier was born in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Canada on May 24, 1948. She received a BA from the University of Saskatchewan in 1969 and a MA from the University of Alberta in 1980. She taught high school English and worked as a guidance counselor for numerous years. Her first collection of poetry, Inside in the Sky, was published in 1976. show more Her other collections of poetry include The Garden Going on Without Us, Angels of Flesh, Angels of Silence, Everything Arrives at the Light, Apocrypha of Light, What the Living Won't Let Go, and Whetstone. In 1992, she won the Governor General's Award, the Canadian Authors Association Award, and the Pat Lowther Poetry Award for Inventing the Hawk. She has also edited two non-fiction collections: Desire in Seven Voices and Addiction: Notes from the Belly of the Beast. Together with her husband and fellow poet Patrick Lane, she edited the collection Breathing Fire: Canada's New Poets and Breathing Fire 2. She teaches in the creative writing program at the University of Victoria. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Patrick Lane was born in Nelson, British Columbia, Canada on March 26, 1939. He wrote more than 20 collections of poetry as well as novels and nonfiction books. His first collection of poetry, Letters from a Savage Mind, was published in 1966. His other poetry collections included Separations, Beware the Months of Fire, Winter and Mortal Remains, show more The Collected Poems of Patrick Lane, and No Longer Two People written with his wife Lorna Crozier. Poems, New and Selected received the Governor General's Literary Award for poetry in 1978 and Too Spare, Too Fierce received the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize in 1995. His novels included Red Dog, Red Dog and Deep River Night. His memoir There Is a Season received the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence and B.C. Award for Canadian Nonfiction. He was made an officer of the Order of Canada in 2014 for his vast and accomplished body of work. He died of a heart attack on March 7, 2019 at the age of 79. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir, Literature Studies and Criticism
- DDC/MDS
- 155.2 — Philosophy & psychology Psychology Differential and developmental psychology Individual Psychology
- LCC
- HV5840 .C3 .A63 — Social sciences Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Drug habits. Drug abuse
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 50
- Popularity
- 603,414
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.36)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 1
