( 5 reviews )
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( 7 of 15 found this review helpful ) Posted: Mar 26 2006
This book is OK if you want to read about all the stupid things that someone on drugs does. I just couldn't get in to the book. The writing style was sophomoric and the story just seemed shallow. At the end, the author has a note that a portion of the proceeds from this book (if any) will go towards spinal research. By adding "if any", I get the impression that he knows that the book isn't that great, but that we'll hopefully feel better about buying the book because we're contributing to spinal research.
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( 7 of 7 found this review helpful ) Posted: Feb 26 2006
Quite simply, this is a phenomenal piece of work by an unapologetic author. This memoir is face-first, honest and thrives with a heat that keeps us all moving. With a mere glimpse into the mind of an addict, I was confronted with the realization that we are ALL connected... regardless of the measure of our crimes. I recommend this book for people who want to read something with real heart and sincerity. This is certainly NOT something for weak-stomachs or light entertainment.
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( 16 of 16 found this review helpful ) Posted: Dec 21 2005
Sam Paul's breakout memoir is a love story told in three parts-the early romance and dating, the all-consuming passion, and then the decent into drugs and jail time. The book opens with Sam falling in love with Jenifer Jane Lansing. Both are college kids living in crappy Texas apartments, working part time jobs, and using marijuana (but nothing harder). Sam manages to prove that the spirit of the 60's is still alive, with his by-the-seat-of-his-pants existence, the environment of drug-sharing and happiness, and his pure love for Jenifer. He saves some money, hitches a ride, and attends a series of Greatful Dead shows in Northern CA and Oregon, scoring hydroponic weed and an entire sheet of acid to more fully experience the music. His relationship with Jenifer blossoms, and the two move in together. They take a series of vacations to Mexico and to go camping, exploring the country and loving one another. It's heartening to see people enjoying themselves and America in this manner. Sam repeatedly discovers that hard drugs aren't as great as every anti-drug commercial told him they would be. He's happy with the weed and some occasional harder stuff, but it seems like everyone around him is becoming a coke addict. After watching Jenifer have a coke-induced seizure, it makes Sam sick to even be around it. But then the pair descend on slippery slope of heroin addiction, leading to the final third of the novel, in which Sam must confront his demons. He experiences with cops, the legal system, and the jail system are enlightening and shocking to anyone who hasn't experienced that world. The memoir is told in the style of a personal journal. There are no chapters, just entries broken up into the three major sections of Sam's tale. Sam wrote in his book that he dislikes the term "page-turner," but unfortunately, that is exactly what this book is! It isn't a small book, but I found myself captivated by Sam's adventures and meditations on his own life, and I kept wanting to pick it back up to learn more. He's at work on a second book, and I can't wait for more from this new author.
