The Book of Drugs cover art

The Book of Drugs

A Memoir

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The Book of Drugs

By: Mike Doughty
Narrated by: Mike Doughty
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About this listen

Mike Doughty first came to prominence as the leader of the band Soul Coughing, then did an abrupt sonic left turn, much to the surprise of his audience, transforming into a solo performer of stark, dusky, but strangely hopeful tunes. He battled addiction, gave up fame when his old band was at the height of its popularity, and drove thousands of miles, alone, across America, with just an acoustic guitar.

His candid, hilarious, self-lacerating memoir, The Book of Drugs - featuring cameos by Redman, Ani DiFranco, the late Jeff Buckley, and others - is the story of his band’s rise and bitter collapse, the haunted and darkly comical life of addiction, and the perhaps even weirder world of recovery.

©2012 Mike Doughty (P)2011 Audible, Inc.
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Critic Reviews

"Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll have never been deconstructed with such literary elegance and self-deprecating honesty. I was riveted by Mike's evolution, through relentless hard work, from a neophyte with great musical insights, to a master musician. Most of all, I felt Mike's spirit: his humility, courage and power, and his remarkable transformation from imminent self-destruction to prolific, spiritually transparent artist. This is a tremendously brave and rigorously honest book; funny, sad, jarring and achingly true. He had me from the first page." (Rosanne Cash, author of Composed)
"Hardly your typical rock star memoir. Doughty is brutally honest about life as an addict…. Bringing the writing skill that he has crafted to his underground poetry, magazine articles, and songs, Doughty conveys his message with both despair and humor…. A compelling look at one man's struggle to come to terms with the much-discussed connection between addiction and art." (Publishers Weekly )
"Doughty’s life, as chronicled in these pages, is not so much a revelation for its narrative arc (kid makes the big time, starts in with the dope, the band breaks up, kid is redeemed), as it is for the astonishingly vital, energized, and natural voice contained in its pages, one which never once had a ghost writer presiding over it, likewise its acerbic and sometimes lacerating honesty." (Rick Moody)

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