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sarieinsea's review against another edition
4.0
I have been wanting to read this ever since it came out, having heard several interviews with Sarah Hepola on various podcasts. Her book is just as honest, funny, and gut-wrenching as I expected. Hepola has a great voice, and a way of describing her experiences that makes you care about her without pitying her. She doesn't shy away from the ugliness of her alcoholism, or wallow in or make excuses for it. I found her frankness refreshing and inspiring, and because of all these things, I basically didn't put the book down once I started it.
I have experienced blackouts, and they are scary, embarrassing, confusing and frustrating. It's terrifying to wake up and not know how you got where you are, or what happened last night. Hepola makes it clear that blacking out is something no one wants to experience, and yet, surprisingly, I didn't find myself wondering "why don't you just quit drinking already?!" That's because even as she takes you through her own history with alcohol, which started when she was just a kid and continued until she finally quit drinking in her mid-thirties, she's pretty up-front about all the reasons we like drinking.
The first half of the book details her experiences with alcohol, blackouts, weight gain, and damaged relationships. The second half addresses her life post-alcohol, what it was like to quit and learn how to engage with other people without the crutch of drinking.
I highly, highly recommend this book, even if you've never had a drinking problem, because we all know someone who has, and we all have addictions of our own. And because it'll make you think a little bit about how and why we use alcohol and other vices both to celebrate and have fun with our loved ones, and to bury our pain and secrets.
I have experienced blackouts, and they are scary, embarrassing, confusing and frustrating. It's terrifying to wake up and not know how you got where you are, or what happened last night. Hepola makes it clear that blacking out is something no one wants to experience, and yet, surprisingly, I didn't find myself wondering "why don't you just quit drinking already?!" That's because even as she takes you through her own history with alcohol, which started when she was just a kid and continued until she finally quit drinking in her mid-thirties, she's pretty up-front about all the reasons we like drinking.
The first half of the book details her experiences with alcohol, blackouts, weight gain, and damaged relationships. The second half addresses her life post-alcohol, what it was like to quit and learn how to engage with other people without the crutch of drinking.
I highly, highly recommend this book, even if you've never had a drinking problem, because we all know someone who has, and we all have addictions of our own. And because it'll make you think a little bit about how and why we use alcohol and other vices both to celebrate and have fun with our loved ones, and to bury our pain and secrets.
lacyk_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Beautifully and elegantly written and spoken. Sarah's writing is humble and funny but also compelling and easy to relate to.
tucc_turtle's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
mckaylaharder's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
thefemalekyle's review against another edition
5.0
It scared me how much this resonated with me at times...good read and helped me put my own drinking into harsh light and perspective.
earlyandalone's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
asurges's review against another edition
5.0
Terrifically funny ("It's not a good sign when your stoned fuck buddy is giving you decorating tips") and well written ("...life is bookended by forgetting, as though memory forms the tunnel that leads into and out of the human body"). One of the best memoirs I've read; definitely my favorite of all the addiction memoirs.
littletaiko's review against another edition
3.0
A book club friend recommended this book a couple of years ago. I had heard the author speak on a few radio shows and was interested since she grew up in Dallas and currently lives here. This was an interesting and surprisingly light look at the dangers of binge drinking, especially for people who are prone to blacking out which is quite different from passing out. People in a black out act are awake and functioning but have absolutely no idea or memory of what happened. She doesn't hold back about the many mistakes she's made in her life and the hard struggle to become sober. The one thing that seemed a bit inconsistent is that she says she doesn't blame her family and realizes it's genetics, it did seem based on her stories that she was blaming them a just a little. Actually, now that I write this, I think she was explaining why her younger self started to drink. Like a lot of pre-teen/teenagers she was convinced that nobody felt like she did and could not be as unhappy. Once she got older of course she came to her senses but continued to drink for a variety of other reasons. Sorry, had to work that out in my head while typing.
jennystout21's review against another edition
5.0
Hepola shares her experience of being a blackout drinker for over two decades. She took her first sip of beer at age 6 and loved it, had her first blackout in the 6th grade, and had a love affair (or, rather, an abusive relationship) with alcohol until she quit in her mid-30's.
Hepola's story is never morose or preachy. She's witty, relatable, and human. She expertly details what alcohol *did* give her: a fearless sense of adventure and the ability to lose her self-consciousness; and she details what it took away from her: hours and hours gone from her memory.
Hepola's story is never morose or preachy. She's witty, relatable, and human. She expertly details what alcohol *did* give her: a fearless sense of adventure and the ability to lose her self-consciousness; and she details what it took away from her: hours and hours gone from her memory.