Recounts the addiction and recovery of the world-renowned solo artist and former lead singer and songwriter of Soul Coughing.

“The role of the critic,” Daniel Mendelsohn writes, “is to mediate intelligently and stylishly between a work and its audience; to educate and edify in an engaging and, preferably, entertaining way.” His latest collection exemplifies the range, depth, and erudition that have made him “required reading for anyone interested in dissecting culture” (The Daily Beast). In Ecstasy and Terror, Mendelsohn once again casts an eye at literature, film, television, and the personal essay, filtering his insights through his training as a scholar of classical antiquity in illuminating and sometimes surprising ways. Many of these essays look with fresh eyes at our culture’s Greek and Roman models: some find an arresting modernity in canonical works (Bacchae, the Aeneid), while others detect a “Greek DNA” in our responses to national traumas such as the Boston Marathon bombings and the assassination of JFK. There are pieces on contemporary literature, from the “aesthetics of victimhood” in Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life to the uncomfortable mixture of art and autobiography in novels by Henry Roth, Ingmar Bergman, and Karl Ove Knausgård. Mendelsohn considers pop culture, too, in essays on the feminism of Game of Thrones and on recent films about artificial intelligence—a subject, he reminds us, that was already of interest to Homer. This collection also brings together for the first time a number of the award-winning memoirist’s personal essays, including his “critic’s manifesto” and a touching reminiscence of his boyhood correspondence with the historical novelist Mary Renault, who inspired him to study the Classics.

In 1995, after receiving a tip from an informant that a new drug called Ecstasy was being pushed in Manhattan’s nightclubs, DEA agent Robert Gagne embarked on a mission to unravel one of the world’s most lucrative drug-trafficking networks. Chemical Cowboys tracks Gagne as he infiltrates New York’s club scene, uncovering a multimillion-dollar criminal empire that spans continents. At its helm is Oded “Fat Man” Tuito, an Israeli fugitive and elusive drug kingpin who combines Wall Street business savvy with old-fashioned street smarts and a taste for violence. A taut behind-the-scenes glimpse into an international criminal enterprise, Chemical Cowboys is a riveting tale of one man’s obsessive pursuit of justice—and the personal cost of that obsession.

Are you longing for your life to be easier and more fun? Would you like to stop pushing, micromanaging, and forcing things so you can relax? What if you could enjoy what you have instead of always lusting for 'more'? What if you could live in 'the zone', propelled by powerful currents toward the right people and opportunities? What if you could stop worrying about money and live with more emotional ease in the moment? If you answer 'yes' to all these questions and desire lasting positive change, then prepare to experience the ecstasy of surrender. The art of letting go, Dr Judith Orloff explains, is the secret key to manifesting power and success in all areas of life, including work, relationships, sexuality, radiant ageing and health and healing. In our superconnected world where emails and text messages constantly interrupt us, it's easier to let go than you think. Once embraced, surrendering removes roadblocks and the exhaustion that comes from 'trying too hard' – and it helps you achieve goals more effortlessly and brings ongoing happiness. With her stunning gift for storytelling coupled with her unique, results-oriented approach to physical, emotional and spiritual health – marrying neuroscience, psychiatry, intuitive medicine, energy techniques, and more – Judith provides a powerful, practical and accessible map for anyone who is longing to be happier but who feels stuck, burned-out, tense, worried or afraid to let go.

Craving for Ecstasy and Natural Highs explains how the pursuit of pleasure can result in compulsion and loss of control, and explores positive ways to achieve lasting happiness. It provides insight on how to improve quality of life and how to offer support to students, clients, family, or friends whose lives may be compromised by addiction. Timely and comprehensive, the text addresses current topics related to drug use and society, including the medicalization, lega

"Harvey B. Milkman and Stanley Sunderwirth have written a tour de force. Craving for Ecstasy and Natural Highs: A Positive Approach to Mood Alteration . . . is a beautifully written and organized book . . . a thrill ride through the most innovative and insightful perspectives that science and clinical experience have to offer . . . hip and artistic, reflecting a deep understanding of addiction . . . a major contribution to the field; it is must reading." - Howard J. Shaffer, PhD, CAS Editor, Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School Director, Division on Addictions, Cambridge Health Alliance "Reading this book is in itself and ecstatic experience! . . . a fascinating journey that explores the benefits and risks of pleasure and the universal desire to feel good . . . It's quite a trip." - G. Alan Marlatt, PhD, University of Washington People from all walks of life often lose themselves in pursuing counterfeit pleasures--cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, thrill seeking, sex, food, gambling, and on-line fantasies to name just a few. How does the pursuit of pleasure result in compulsion and loss of control? Craving for Ecstasy and Natural Highs addresses this fundamental question and then explores positive ways to achieve lasting happiness and fulfillment. Readers will gain important insight on how to improve their own quality of life and will learn how to offer support to clients, students, family, and friends whose lives may be compromised by hedonic dependencies. Students of addictive behaviors and anyone interested in discovering healthy means to satisfy the drive to alter consciousness will find this book compelling. Reviews of previous work: "The chemistry and psychology of addiction are described with considerable insight. . . . These authors know their stuff and make a compelling case." - The Los Angeles Times "The authors provide a valuable service by placing into perspective a large array of behaviors that could be considered addictive." - JAMA

Mia and Sophie have been best friends forever — but that's all about to change. Experimenting with alcohol, flirting with boys, and dabbling in drugs, their lives quickly spiral out of control. There is little currently available for young readers — and their parents — that accurately reflects both the appeal and the consequences of drug use from a teenage perspective, making this an important and valuable novel.

High Price is the harrowing and inspiring memoir of neuroscientist Carl Hart, a man who grew up in one of Miami’s toughest neighborhoods and, determined to make a difference as an adult, tirelessly applies his scientific training to help save real lives. Young Carl didn't see the value of school, studying just enough to keep him on the basketball team. Today, he is a cutting-edge neuroscientist—Columbia University’s first tenured African American professor in the sciences—whose landmark, controversial research is redefining our understanding of addiction. In this provocative and eye-opening memoir, Dr. Carl Hart recalls his journey of self-discovery, how he escaped a life of crime and drugs and avoided becoming one of the crack addicts he now studies. Interweaving past and present, Hart goes beyond the hype as he examines the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. His findings shed new light on common ideas about race, poverty, and drugs, and explain why current policies are failing.

A bestsellig romance author suffers a paralyzing stroke and her philandering husband wonders how this will affect his gambling and whoring budget; two young lovers must come to terms with their chemically induced deformity; Lloyd from Leith transfigures his passion for an unhappily married woman. These three tales confirm Irvine Welsh's position as a master of the "chemical" romance genre.