Synopses & Reviews
Greg Campbell, coauthor of the bestselling Flawless and Blood Diamonds, presents a compelling, close-up investigation of a hot-button topic: America's schizophrenic attitude to the legalization of pot. Campbell, a suburban father whose biggest vice is a cold beer, seems like the last person who would grow weed in his basement. But his attitude changed in 2009, when his home state of Colorado led the nation in mainstreaming medical marijuana. Watching with fascination as above-board and financially thriving dispensaries popped up everywhere, Campbell wondered, “Why not me?” Pot, Inc. chronicles Greg's journey into DIY ganjapreneurialism, as he learns how to cultivate marijuana, examines America's often unduly harsh laws, and unearths ignorance about pot's centuries-old therapeutic value--ignorance the government is desperate to maintain. Along the way, he also gains a very personal insight into the drug's medicinal value that shapes his opinion about legalization.
Review
Praise for FLAWLESS: "Like a diamond, this true-life caper is clear, colorful, and brilliant." --Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Fans of caper books and movies will be in seventh heaven here. ...A must-read for true-crime fans." --Booklist (starred review)
Review
"Is legalizing marijuana for medical purposes primarily a cover for increasing access for recreational use, or will legalization chiefly provide medical relief to patients with few other options while also fostering a more open dialog about this controversial substance? Although a number of states now allow marijuana for medical use, it is still illegal under federal law. Citing curiosity as his motive, Campbell (
Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History) sought an insider's view into cannabis culture. The author, who lives in Colorado, where medical marijuana is legal under state law, gets approved as a medical user, attends cannabis conventions, studies cannabis horticulture, and interviews advocates and DEA officials to learn more about this way of life. VERDICT With humor (e.g., explaining to his teenage son about the pot growing in their basement and trying to cover the pervasive smell from neighbors) and compassion (e.g., in interviews with patients who have found relief only through marijuana), Campbell provides an absorbing and thought-provoking firsthand look at this hotly debated issue. Recommended."
--Library Journal
About the Author
GREG CAMPBELL is the author of
Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History (a
Denver Post,
Globe & Mail, and
Library Journal bestseller),
Blood Diamonds: Tracing the Deadly Path of the World's Most Precious Stones (the source material for the Leonardo DiCaprio movie of the same name), and
The Road to Kosovo: A Balkan Diary. Campbell is also an award-winning journalist whose his writing has appeared in
The Wall Street Journal Magazine,
The Economist,
The San Francisco Times,
Paris Match, and
The Christian Science Monitor, among others. He lives in Fort Collins, CO.