This was a great book, that I read after reading his father's book Beautiful Boy, giving his story about Nick. It must have been painful for both of them to write their books, however it shows the enduring power of love. It also demonstrates that sometimes tough love is the way to go. It was hard to imagine the pain that was endured by both.

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ok- this books took me quite some time to read... you see, i am an addict. the insanity of addiction is real and well represented in this book. i identify with this book totally.
please understand this book is not some over the top glamorization of addiction- it is a brutally honest look into the depths of addiction.
if you have a loved one who is in trouble, please read this book- it just might help you understand what you are up against.
addiction is not a moral failing. or a choice. it is a serious disease- as deadly as cancer and just as unwanted in your life...
recovery is possible- hard, but not impossible.
this book is a nice compliment to "beautiful boy" written by his father

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I am a huge fan of memoirs and was interested to read Nic's story. The first hundred pages are shooting up and getting high, shooting up and getting high, shooting up and getting high...you get the point. He gets his life turned around and gives the reader a reprieve from the monotony of a drug addict's day-to-day life only to throw it all away again. I became frustrated with him and his story. I didn't feel that I could trust him at the time when he decided to write this book, as I'm not sure he's really at a point to reflect on his life as an addict. He is still too vulnerable and shaky. Ten years from now, if he is able to remain sober THEN I'd like to read his reflection. This comes too early in his journey.

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I think this is an interesting look at the life and thought processes of an addict. Definetely not a good book for an addict, too much to tempt. I think its worth a read for those who can, but for myself having dealt with an addict, it was pretty painful.

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Going into this book, I wasn't entirely prepared for the graphic explicitness. But it opened my eyes to the world of drug use in a sort of intimate way. If you want to read something that will shock you, but make you sympathize, this is a great book to read.

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great book for people fighting addiction and for those who have family/friends that are in active addiction.... I cant wait to read nicks fathers view point of nicks meth addiction in "Beautiful boy"

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I really enjoyed this book.
I love how it was written from his point of you and how he didn't sugar coat things. when things were bad they were bad and he stated how bad they were. I found this a bit inspiring during the positive parts and shockingly heartbreaking during the negative parts.

How someone could endure this sort of life style then pull themselves out of it countless times proves the strength of someone's soul. This book I recommend to others but advise drug addicts or those in recovery to proceed with caution because I can see how it would be somewhat of a trigger.

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I believe this book is an excellent attempt at giving readers a B rated look at addiction. I found some of the book realistic and other parts not as grounded in truth. It is as if Sheff tried to shield readers from some of the ugliness and grim related to addiction. Although he hints at some of this, he gives a muted picture. I know many addicts who were addicted for much longer periods of time than Nic went through between recovery periods. The world of Meth and Heroin gets much darker than what is portrayed in this book. In addition, Nic's parents were angry, but they still loved Nic. Many addicts no longer have family to turn to or to even hope to win back. I know many people felt this book was dark, but if you want to know the truth about addiction you will have to dig into much darker material than you will find here.

That being said. This could be a good book to read with your older teens in an effort to discuss the dangers related to drug use. It could be a tool for talking to them about drugs.

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i really enjoyed this book, I couldn't put it down

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Heartbreaking and real. I bought this intending to to give it someone I love with a drug problem. After reading it I changed my mind, it was so real and true to the emotions of the author I was afraid it might actually become a trigger to my loved one. It gave me a new perspective into the mind set of a drug addict which has helped my understanding and my healing.

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Unfortunately this is a subject I know too much about. The book is graphic, but then so is the lifestyle. I wouldn't even go out on a limb & say this is should be in the 'young adult' category; it should be a cautionary tale... you can almost smell the desperation in Nic's writing at times. Not for the weak of heart, or at times stomach.

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