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12 Steps
12 Steps
A novel of addiction, recovery and the social cost of substance abuse treatment.It’s a novel about redemption. And failure.A story of small mistakes, smaller victories and the unintended consequences of decisions made in the name of emotional health.It is a novel without car chases.
Book Excerpt
of a whole pocket full of change. That's why they call them crack whores as opposed to Schnapps whores).
It was apparent that his lack of forthrightness had disappointed her. "She'll call back," he said. "They always do. Too codie not to."
She laughed, a sound like wine glasses tinkling. "You have such a big heart. Try not to save the whole world, okay?" Then she winked at him, and he thought about asking her for sex.
"Anybody on the verge of death?" he asked.
"Not immediately."
A nod. Good enough. He wished her good evening and watched her all the way out the door.
*
Cynicism is a way of life in the drunk and sober business. One learns to expect nothing, to doubt success as a temporary achievement, to assume failure. It isn't so much a defense mechanism as a result of years of anecdotal evidence. The few who succeed, the average odds being about one in thirty, vanish without a word. Mental health workers frequently (and with statistical safety) assume that the
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A very good read, but dark, very dark. Although there is an underlying story, it's more a view on a side of life few of us will see, if we are lucky. It's one of those books that is addictive in a very subtle way, every time I put it down I was looking forward to picking it up again.
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This book is literature -- a story about the human condition, its ugly, tragic failure modes and few glittering successes. It's honest in the way that only fiction can really be, asking the big questions about what we really are and where the limits lie to compassion, while simultaneously exposing the grinding banality of evil.
Oh, and by the way, it's compulsively, page-turningly readable, and well marbled with pitch-black humor. You should totally read it.
Oh, and by the way, it's compulsively, page-turningly readable, and well marbled with pitch-black humor. You should totally read it.
12/27/2010