Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Review: Blackout Girl by Jennifer Storm


From Goodreads:

"Where the hell am I? How did I get here?"

Beginning at the age of 12, Jennifer Storm asked herself these questions many times after waking from alcohol-induced blackouts. During her teens and early twenties, Storm turned to alcohol to deal with the traumas in her life. In addition to alcohol, she also experimented with drugs, and eventually began using crack to deal with the deep black hole of sadness, loss, and unworthiness that she felt inside herself.

That is, until she awoke in a hospital psych ward and saw bandages on her wrists. "The doctor came in and said I was a very lucky girl to be alive," she explains, "and for the first time in my life, I believed it." She agreed to transfer to a rehabilitation center, though she wondered how life would be without alcohol and drugs. "Even as I asked myself this question, I quietly just knew I would never need them again. That inherent knowledge gave me a greater sense of peace than I had ever felt before. It was intoxicating in a whole new way."


My Thoughts:

I enjoyed this memoir more when it got towards the end, and Jennifer was in her healing process. The beginning and middle parts were difficult for me to read, mainly because I felt so angry at her for her actions. Her behavior was so self-destructive...and I felt sorry for her parents. This is why I gave it a three star rating. However, towards the end of her story, I warmed up to her a great deal. She overcomes her addictions, attends college, and chooses a profession that is perfect for her. I found this to be a good but challenging read.

Photobucket Good

  • Paperback: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Hazelden Publishing (February 15, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1592854680
  • ISBN-13: 978-1592854684



5 comments:

StephTheBookworm said...

Oooh, I love how this one sounds. I just love memoirs. Your new header is absolutely adorable, by the way.

Lisa said...

This sounds like something my 15yo might find interesting--and it's hard to find books that she will read. I'll have to keep an eye out for it.

Love the new header!

Marce said...

I was going to ask if Storm is her real name, duh Marce :-)

This one looks good, I will read it and see if I can recommend it to clients.

The hard parts are easy to get angry at aren't they.

Priya Parmar said...

i also find this type of book to be quite difficult to get through. but when i do, i am always pleased i read it. thank you for the review!

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

The book sounds intriguing...I do enjoy memoirs, but, like you, I sometimes feel frustrated by the behavior and poor choices.

I saw a lot of this kind of behavior with clients, and I've even fictionalized some of these moments in my own novels.

I also LOVE your new blog header!

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