Jan S. (jjbooker) reviewed on 7/12/2008 + 9 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

"Close your eyes
Have no fear
The monsters gone
He's on the run and your daddy's here"

Thus begins John Lennon's lyrics to "Beautiful Boy". Author David Sheff adapts the song title into an apt name for the memoir chronicling his experiences with his first born son, who struggled off and on with addiction for more than a century. This book, expanded from an article published in the New York Times Magazine, evolved into a page turner illuminating the years Sheff spent consumed by worry, sleepless nights, anxiety and powerlessness over his son's advancing drug consumption. The tale culminates with the author's self-awarenss of his codependency; he didn't cause his son's addiction to methamphetamine anymore than he could control it or cure it. He writes, "...our children live and die with or without us. No matter what we do, no matter how we agonize or obsess, we cannot chose for our children whether they live or die. It is a devastating realization, but also liberating. I finally chose life for myself. I chose the perilous but essential path that allows me to accept that Nic will decide for himself how - and whether - he will live his life."

Accompany David Sheff on his journey as he masterfully narrates the life events leading to his son begin grasped by the jaws of the substance-abuse monster.

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