Blackout: Recollections of the Alcohol I Used to Suppress My Memories

Charles Villezcas: Reading Sarah’s story is like reading about my very own life and struggles with alcohol. I like how real and true to the bone this book is. Thank you Sarah for putting your journey out there for others to read about.

United States on Nov 17, 2023

Kindle Customer: A great read. Lots of identification as I'm A fellow drunk. How dark it was before the dawn!
Thank you!

United Kingdom on Oct 10, 2023

Tonya: Her transparency and straight talk was refreshing. So relatable. I found myself not wanting to put it down and not wanting it to end.

United States on Oct 05, 2023

Compassion2022: She tells her story but dives into the emotions to really make you feel like you are not different- but you are. Definitely worth it!

United States on Oct 04, 2023

Lucysos: I got this book as had recently read another similar memoir and this looked like it would be an interesting take on the genre. But I found the author didn't have the humour or storytelling skills to really pull it off. The introduction is great with some science added in to add context . But then it moves into autobiography mode - and the author's life is very ordinary and normal in my opinion. It was simply chapters and chapters around her experimenting with drink and boys in her teens and college. I almost forgot i was reading a book about addiction and drinking.
She spends a lot of time talking about her love life which I guess she links to the drinking but it felt more about her lack of self esteem and neediness. Her drinking stories - ok some are a bit crazy - but mostly they are just quite boring.
These type of books are great if they inspire you or you feel fascinated by their story and recovery. I just felt the author's journey was not that special compared to others in the same situation. Sorry but just wasn't for me.
I gave up before the end as life is too short to stick with books that really aren't doing it for you.

United Kingdom on Sep 04, 2023

Etre: Good

United Kingdom on Aug 01, 2023

J Calota: I thoroughly enjoyed Sarah Hepola’s honest account of her history of blackouts and her fraught relationship with alcohol. Would definitely recommend it!

United Kingdom on Jun 11, 2023

CLAIR LEWIS: Very interesting read. I think it would help people struggling with drink. Found it intriguing how Sarah started drinking. Thank you.

United Kingdom on Jan 21, 2023

D. Brown: I loved Blackout not for the title’s subject but for the way Sarah Hepola told her story. Even though I have never experienced anything remotely like her addiction to alcohol, she made her experience so relatable. Her honesty, humor, and quirkiness jumped off the page. What I especially enjoyed were her observations about her many close girlfriends and the importance of their relationships.

With her best friend, Anna, who had the “industrial grade memory,” Hepola observed that the gift to a friend is to remember minute details she told you about her life. Yet, later in the book she realized that despite the deep friendship for so many decades with Anna, she had been replaced, and that saddened her. But earlier, she frets over offending Anna after Anna gave birth. Hepola observed the indirectness of female friendships.

Hepola’s memoir proves to be much more than a story about alcoholism. While Hepola has another memoir due out soon that deals her dating life, I only wish that still another memoir would deal with her relationships with her many female friends.

United States on Jun 18, 2020

at_sob: Just finished reading this book. I'm giving it 5 stars. Was hesitating – couldn’t make my mind up between 4 and 5. But going with 5! Not that I don't have issues with it or some criticism -- I do -- but still, an amazing book. Will definitely need some more time to fully digest it. I first heard of Sarah Hepola on a replay of an NPR interview with her. I never had a drinking problem (in fact, I had nearly zero alcohol in my entire life and, somehow, the culture of alcohol she describes is something I rarely bumped into up close) and wasn’t particularly interested in the topic. Something about Sarah's in-your-face interviewing style grabbed me and I bought the book.
My critique is split into three parts.
Part 1: The main bulk of the book. Probably 85-90% of the book. Very very well written. A flabbergasting and brutally honest chronicle of the mechanics of alcoholism and a description of its effects on every bit of her life. Hard to believe anyone in the world would read this and still want to go get drunk. But as Sarah illustrates, alcoholism plays cruel games on your mind, so who knows, some folks may read this and still feel like getting a drink…
Hepola's...

United States on Jul 26, 2016