Addiction Memoirs

In Broken, William Cope Moyers tells the story of a love affair with alcohol and crack cocaine that led him to the brink of death over and over again. A harrowing account, it paints a picture of a young man with every advantage who found himself spiraling into a dark abyss. Battling shame and self-doubt at every turn, the author finally emerges into the clear light of recovery as he dedicates his life to changing the politics of addiction.

9-year-old Nichole and her parents are evicted from their home because both of her parents are addicted to heroin. With nowhere left to turn, they are now homeless. In order to survive they must dig through dumpsters, beg, and steal. While living on the streets, Nichole struggles to understand why people treat them differently.

He is considered by many the greatest basketball player ever produced by the hoops-crazy state of Kentucky. In two years at the University of Kentucky, he scored over 1,000 points, led the Wildcats to a Sweet Sixteen appearance and was nicknamed “King Rex.” The first player ever drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, he spent twelve seasons in the NBA, dazzling in dunk contests and sinking one of the most memorable buzzer-beaters in league history. But by the end of his career, Rex Chapman was harboring a destructive secret.

An unflinching and hilarious memoir about recovery as a mother of young kids, Bottled explains the perils moms face with drinking and chronicles the author's path to recovery, from hitting bottom to the months of early sobriety - a blur of pain and chaos - to her now (in)frequent moments of peace. Punctuated by potent, laugh-out-loud sarcasm, Bottled offers practical suggestions on how to be a sober, present-in-the-moment mom, one day at a time, and provides much needed levity on an issue too often treated with deadly seriousness.

There are shelves of memoirs about overcoming the death of a parent, childhood abuse, rape, drug addiction, miscarriage, alcoholism, hustling, gangbanging, near-death injuries, drug dealing, prostitution, or homelessness. Cupcake Brown survived all these things before she'd even turned 20.

Free Refills is the harrowing tale of a Harvard-trained medical doctor run horribly amok through his addiction to prescription medication, and his recovery. Dr. Peter Grinspoon seemed to be a total success: A Harvard-educated MD with a thriving practice; married with two great kids and a gorgeous wife; a pillar of his community. But lurking beneath the thin veneer of having it all was an addict fueled on a daily boatload of prescription meds. When the police finally came calling - after a tip from a sharp-eyed pharmacist - Grinspoon's house of cards came tumbling down fast.

For all of Emory's life she's been told who she is. In town she's the rich one—the great-great-granddaughter of the mill's founder. At school she's hot Maddie Ward's younger sister. And at home, she's the good one, her stoner older brother Joey's babysitter. Everything was turned on its head, though, when she and Joey were in the car accident that killed Candy MontClaire. The car accident that revealed just how bad Joey's drug habit was.

Anthony Bourdain didn’t just eat his way across the world—he narrated it, dissected it, and ultimately got devoured by it. Anthony Bourdain: A Guy Who Should Be Dead is an unflinching portrait of the man behind the myth: heroin addict, father, chef, celebrity, and loner. With a sardonic tone that echoes Hemingway and a scalpel-sharp narrative, this book strips away the glossy TV persona and reveals the fractured, compelling human beneath. From his suburban New Jersey childhood and the drug-fueled chaos of New York’s culinary underbelly, to the accidental explosion of Kitchen ...

Leaving behind a nightmarish college experience, 19-year-old Nicole and her best friend Eric escape their home of Bangor, Maine to start a new life in Boston. Fragile and scared, Nicole desperately seeks a new beginning to help erase her past. But there is something besides freedom waiting for her in the shadows - a drug that will make every day a nightmare.

Have you ever found yourself covered in cookie crumbs with an empty container next to you after an argument with your spouse, but you have no recollection of eating an entire box of Thin Mints? Do you struggle to stay committed to a diet meal plan because you just are constantly hungry? Does food provide you comfort in your loneliest moments? In this thought-provoking and practical book, When Food Is Your Drug will help you determine the extent of your emotional eating issue and how to go about addressing it. Emotional eaters know they have a relationship with food that is not “normal” ...

Jill Kelly's personal stories describe the journey as two decades of drinking and despair gave way to a richly rewarding sober life. Her demons did not go quietly when she put the bottle down. Loneliness, anxiety, distrust of others - they were all still there. This memoir tells how she has learned to be with those demons and not drink, to let go of the jealous dramas of the past and embrace a new life of peace.

Sentenced to 65 years in a Texas prison, Damon West once had it all. He came from a great family, in a home full of God, love, support, and opportunities to reach any goal. A natural born leader, an athlete with good looks and charm, he appeared to be the all-American kid pursuing his dreams. Underneath this facade, however, was an addict in the early stages of disease. After suffering childhood sexual abuse by a babysitter at the age of nine, Damon began putting chemicals into his body to alter the way he felt.

Lisa Smith was a bright young lawyer at a prestigious law firm in New York City when alcoholism and drug addiction took over her life. 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. Girl Walks Out of a Bar explores Smith's formative years, her decade of alcohol and drug abuse, divorce, and her road to recovery.

Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino gives fans the inside scoop they’ve been begging for with his explosive tell-all. In this whirlwind of action-packed, unbelievable stories, Mike paints a raw and uncensored picture of his rise to stardom, steep fall, and amazing renaissance, all told with unwavering honesty. Divulging everything from drug-fueled orgies to what really happened behind the scenes of reality television’s most loved and dysfunctional family, Mike’s book reveals all for the first time.

In his first book, author Jason Smith explores the depravity and desperation required to maintain an opiate addiction so fierce, he finds himself jumping continents to avoid jail time and learns the hard way that some demons cannot be outrun. While teaching in Europe, he meets a prostitute who secures drugs for him at the dangerous price of helping out the Russian Mafia; in China he gets his Percocet and Xanax fixes but terrifies a crowd of children and parents at his job in the process.

Perhaps the most unconventional and literally breathtaking father-son story you'll ever read, My Friend Leonard pulls you immediately and deeply into a relationship as unusual as it is inspiring. The father figure is Leonard, the high-living, recovering coke addict, "West Coast Director of a large Italian-American finance firm" (read: mobster) who helped to keep James Frey clean in A Million Little Pieces.

“The Devil Inside Me” is a gripping memoir by Joshua T. Berglan that offers an unflinching look into a life marked by addiction, betrayal, and the relentless quest for redemption. Berglan’s candid narrative reveals the depths of his struggles, including multiple incarcerations, bankruptcies, overdoses, and battles with HIV and homelessness. This powerful account delves into the consequences of living a double life and defying one’s true purpose. Berglan’s story serves as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the transformative power of vulnerability and honesty. ...

A best seller in its native Canada, Drunk Mom is a gripping, brutally honest memoir of motherhood in the shadow of alcoholism. Three years after giving up drinking, Jowita Bydlowska found herself throwing back a glass of champagne like it was ginger ale. It was a special occasion: a party celebrating the birth of her first child. It also marked Bydlowska's immediate, full-blown return to crippling alcoholism.

Addicts Are Everywhere Do you know one? Are you living with an alcoholic or addict? Is it somebody in your immediate family? Or how about another important interpersonal relationship? Have you noticed that this person you thought you knew has changed? Do you find yourself wishing you could understand, trying as best you can to bring this person back to the light--but not knowing how? Or is the only addict you see, day in and day out, the one in the mirror? Are you plagued by drug addiction, alcoholism or alcohol dependence? Have you denied it all this time? Broken and barren, struggling ...

Once upon a time, there was a little boy. His belly full of laughter, his life full of joy. Until one day, something changed; stripped his innocence away. The hole inside making space for the devil to come and play.