We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction
*Starred Review* Haven�t we read this before? In fact, yes. Sheff�s first memoir of addiction, Tweak (2008), figures in this follow-up�if only he could finish writing it, the publisher would give him the cash he needs to jump-start a better life, pay back IOUs, and, you know, score some booze and weed. Yes, the drugs are less scary this time (no needles), but the ride is just as terrifying, as the 23-year-old Sheff bounces from two detox centers into a dangerously abrupt relationship living with a girl in Charleston. Good intentions and bad decisions follow: Sheff�s frustrations at a dead-end job lead him to virtually nonstop drinking and smoking, once more testing the patience of everyone he loves. Sheff intelligently portrays himself as the most delusional of unreliable narrators. Prone to rambling, wheedling, and sobbing, he resets his goals with each page and rationalizes the hell out of every impulsive action. Flaws abound here�like, there�s not much of a plot�but Sheff is blessed with off-the-charts readability, and his sex- and profanity-laced first-person narration makes him lovable and hateable in equal measure. The book ends in wobbly stasis, with Sheff celebrating whatever he can: �I have a pretty awesome dog.� Let�s hope, for his sake, there�s not a volume 3. Grades 10-12. --Daniel Kraus--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.