Synopses & Reviews
"What an inspiring book! Doesn't hurt that the author is a superb writer. I never read anything like this and am thrilled to recommend the book to anybody with the problem himself/herself or with a suffering family member."
-Helen Gurley Brown-Editor in Chief, Cosmopolitan magazine
"I was so moved time and again as I experienced the truth in these extraordinary pieces written by people who have been to the edge, flirted with disaster, and returned to new and better lives."
-Dominick Dunne
"From the drinking man's classic, "Saloon Society," in the sixties, to his sadder but wiser, Cool, Hip, and Sober, Bill Manville has consistently provided an honest, insightful first-person account of where alcoholism begins-and where it ends. The hard won wisdom of his latest book will be of value to anyone struggling with addiction."
-Keith Humphreys, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry Stanford University School of Medicine
"In my fifty-five years of journalism, I've seen a lot of people-including reporters and politicians-die from drink and drugs. Cool, Hip, and Sober could have prevented their untimely deaths. In fact, my only complaint is that Bill Manville didn't write and publish Cool, Hip, and Sober fifty-five years ago. It will undoubtedly save a lot of lives. Poignant and poetic, frank and funny, it makes sobriety seem quintessentially cool, so hip it hurts. Cool, Hip, and Sober is a book to give to those who suffer and to the friends and loved ones who suffer along with them. It is a book destined to redeem us all."
-Jack Anderson, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist
"In my twenty-one years in the field of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction many books on the subject have crossed my desk - factual and up to date but difficult for the troubled laymen to act on . . . that is why I think Cool, Hip, and Sober is unique. As a psychologist and chemical dependency professional myself, it is of great value to be able to provide my university students with an accurate portrayal of addiction . . . a text that bridges the gap from that professional perspective to the world of families who have known the personal truth of the journey so richly described in this remarkable text."
32-Dr. Dave Moore, University of Washington, former Director, McDonald Rehabilitation Center, Scripps Health, San Diego
Review
"An inspiring read!"
-Helen Gurley Brown, Editor in Chief, Cosmopolitan magazine
Review
"I praise it to the heavens. I was so moved time and again as I experienced the truth in these extraordinary pieces written by people who have been to edge, flirted with disaster, and returned to new and better lives." —Dominick Dunne
"What an inspiring book! Doesn't hurt that the author is a superb writer. I never read anything like this and am thrilled to recommend the book to anybody with the problem himself/herself or with a suffering family member." —Helen Gurley Brown, Editor-in-Chief, Cosmopolitan Magazine
"Poignant and poetic, frank and funny, Cool, Hip & Sober makes sobriety seem quintessentially cool—so hip it hurts. It is a book to be given to those who suffer and to the friends and loved ones who suffer along with them. It is a book destined to redeemed us all." —Jack Anderson, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist
Review
"I praise it to the heavens. I was so moved time and again as I experienced the truth in these extraordinary pieces written by people who have been to edge, flirted with disaster, and returned to new and better lives." —Dominick Dunne
"What an inspiring book! Doesn't hurt that the author is a superb writer. I never read anything like this and am thrilled to recommend the book to anybody with the problem himself/herself or with a suffering family member." —Helen Gurley Brown, Editor-in-Chief, Cosmopolitan Magazine
"Poignant and poetic, frank and funny, Cool, Hip & Sober makes sobriety seem quintessentially cool—so hip it hurts. It is a book to be given to those who suffer and to the friends and loved ones who suffer along with them. It is a book destined to redeemed us all." —Jack Anderson, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist
Review
"I praise it to the heavens. I was so moved time and again as I experienced the truth in these extraordinary pieces written by people who have been to edge, flirted with disaster, and returned to new and better lives."
Dominick Dunne
Review
"What an inspiring book! Doesn't hurt that the author is a superb writer. I never read anything like this and am thrilled to recommend the book to anybody with the problem himself/herself or with a suffering family member." Helen Gurley Brown
Review
"Poignant and poetic, frank and funny, Cool, Hip, and Sober makes sobriety seem quintessentially cool---so hip it hurts. It is a book to be given to those who suffer and to the friends and loved ones who suffer along with them. It is a book destined to redeemed us all." Former Editor-in-Chief at Cosmopolitan Magazine
Synopsis
In a refreshingly clear-headed and informed approach to addiction, noted writer and radio host Manville sums up what he's learned in more than 40 years of research . . . 20 as a demon-driven drunk and 20 in recovery.
Synopsis
In a refreshingly clear-headed and informed approach to addiction, noted writer and radio host Bill Manville sums up what he's learned in more than forty years of research . . . twenty as a demon-driven drunk and twenty in recovery.
From his popular show "Addictions and Answers," broadcast from KVML in Sonora, California, Manville has compiled a list of 88 questions and answers from, as he says, "a ton of plain and fancy drunks and dopers and their friends and families." As well, he offers valuable advice and information from his guests: noted psychiatrists, psychologists, rehab counselors, MDs, academics, and more.
Here, in first-person detail, are responses to the issues faced by alcoholics, addicts, and their loved ones, such as:
· How to intervene with a substance-abusing friend
· How alcoholics can protect themselves from relapses
· Evaluating therapies, both individual and group
· How alcohol affects sex
· Definitions of "social drinker," "heavy drinker," and alcoholic
· The many faces of denial
· Is alcoholism inherited?
· How to choose the right rehab
· Is there an addictive personality?
· What role does spirituality play in recovery?
A brave and transformational look at the treatment of chemical dependency, Cool, Hip, and Sober is a captivating, insightful and essential handbook for overcoming denial and achieving a peaceful, long-term recovery.
About the Author
After Sarah Lawrence College,
Bill Manville attended the Universite de la Mediteraneen, "majoring in roulette and oranges." His career includes columnist for the
Village Voice and the
Key West Solares Hill, Contributing Editor for
Cosmo and Madison Ave Vice President. "Got my first library card at six," he says, "and by seven no longer wanted to be a fireman but a writer. Most recently I've been hosting a radio talk show, Addictions & Answers, but primarily think of myself as a writer still."
His last novel, Goodbye, was a BOM selection. Sober now for over twenty years, and living in California, he says his hobbies are "maligning my friends and working on a new novel - or are they the same thing?"