What are the best books that are written by people who had drug issues?

Answer 1

Arthur Conan Doyle/Sherlock Holmes; Ken Kesey/One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; Allen Ginsberg/Howl; Samuel Taylor Coleridge/The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner; Jean Paul Sartre/No Exit; Claude Brown/Manchild in the Promised Land; Irvine Welsh/Trainspotting; Aleister Crowlely/Magick Without Tears; Jack Kerouac/On the Road.

Answer 2

Glad so far only one person has recommended "Go Ask Alice."

Go Ask Alice (like "A Million little Pieces") is a hoax - but a surprisingly enduring one. It was first published as a "real" diary of a young girl on drugs and was promoted by schools and libraries until the mid-late 1980s when it was revealed that the writer of Go Ask Alice was actually an adult named Beatrice Sparks, who claimed to be a psychologist who "put together" the diary entries from real kids - although it's now questionable whether she's really a psychologist, and most people doubt any of it's real. It's just made up to be sensational. Surprisingly, schools are still assigning this book, even though it is now labeled "fiction" by the publisher.

not a memoir, but a good fiction book about drug issues is "Trainspotting" by Irvine Welsh
http://www.amazon.com/Trainspotting-Irvine-Welsh/dp/0393314804

Answer 3

If you are counting alcohol, which is a drug, there have been many authors who were alcoholics or alcohol abusers, including: Jack London, Jack Kerouac, William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzerald, Eugene O'Neill, Ernest Hemingway, Charles Jackson, Carson McCullers, John Fante, Hunter Thompson (also a drug abuser), Charles Bukowski & John O'Brien. Hemingway, Thompson & O'Brien committed suicide and several, including London, Fitzgerald, Kerouac & McCullers, certainly died before their time. As did Edgar Allan Poe, who was both an alcoholic and a drug addict.

Books dealing specifically with alcohol and/or the events surrounding alcohol abuse include London's John Barleycorn, O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh & Long Day's Journey Into Night (also, drug abuse), Fante's The Brotherhood of the Grape, Kerouac's Big Sur, almost anything Bukowski wrote, Thomson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Jackson's The Lost Weekend & O'Brien's Leaving Las Vegas. The latter two were the bases of Academy Award winning movies and I believe the early 1960s movie of Long Day's Journey Into Night was nominated for one or more.

Answer 4

Perhaps the best out there is A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick. Dick is best known as the eccentric author responsible for the books and stories that inspired such movies as Blade Runner, Total Recall, The Minority Report, and Paycheck. Even A Scanner Darkly was recently made into an indie film. I haven't seen the movie yet, but the book is definitely worth a look. Even if you aren't a fan of SF, A Scanner Darkly could basically be set in modern times with the removal of one or two elements. It is a haunting look at the world of narcotics from the police who try to bust drug rings to the junkies suffering the effects of addiction. While still alive, Dick experimented heavily with different drugs in the '60s. He also watched many of his friends killed or inflicted with permanent psychosis and brain damage as a result of their habit. His experiences heavily influence this gritty novel. It's by far one of the best books he ever wrote, and definitely a worthy read. Be warned, it's very depressing at times.

Answer 5

Pretty much anything by William Burroughs would be good--"Junkie" is a classic in the field. Hubert Selby wrote "Last Exit to Brooklyn," another classic, and you might remember the recent movie "Requiem for a Dream," which was based on one of his novels. Charles Bukowski was primarily an alcoholic, but I think he also did drugs occasionally. Jean Genet should be on the list, as should Aldous Huxley and Walter Benjamin (who wrote "On Hashish").

Answer 6

One of the most inspirational you'll find is called "Red Bird Just Like This" by Earl Jesse Stevens. It was recently published by Authorhouse.com or you can get it through Amazon.com. or order it at Barnes & Noble. This guy is no James Frey. It's the real nitty gritty.It's not completely about drugs ; it's the life story of a guy who went beyond drugs too.

Answer 7

The WORST book by a drug user is Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Answer 8

Hunter S Thompson was known for being the "creator" of Gonzo Journalism aka writing style that blurs distinctions between fiction and non fiction.

Thompson was most famous for his book "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas". His other works include "The Rum Diary" , "The Curse of Lono", and "The Kingdom of Fear".

" I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me." ~ Hunter S Thompson

Answer 9

Anything by Edgar Allan Poe, (Alcoholic), And my all time favorite drug induced literature, Alice in Wonderland.

Answer 10

The only one that I read and knew about drug problem was A Million Little Pieces.
Turns out the guy was a liar and he made all stuff up, pretending like it really happened to him.