Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction

by David Sheff

Book Overview

#1 New York Times bestseller

"A brilliant, harrowing, heartbreaking, fascinating story, full of beautiful moments and hard-won wisdom. This book will save a lot of lives and heal a lot of hearts." -- Anne Lamott

What had happened to my beautiful boy? To our family? What did I do wrong? Those are the wrenching questions that haunted David Sheff's journey through his son Nic's addiction to drugs and tentative...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0547203888
• ISBN13: 9780547203881
• Release Date: January 2009
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.2" x 7.9"
• Age Range: 15 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 10 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

One of the most touching stories

I found this book to be a really great read! It shares the complexities of familial love, addiction, and the transformative power of truth and healing. I felt all of it as it was very emotional, reflective, heart-wrenching, hopeful, the list goes on.

A sad book

Sad because of the number of times Nic relapses. His poor father is hanging by a thread. As is his mother. A tough book to read. I recommend it.

Beautiful book and came in good condition

It was heartbreaking and devastating. I haven't recovered from it. The book came in better conditions that I expected.

Don’t settle for acceptable

I haven’t read the book yet but I might return it, if possible. There was a ripped page folded in, part of the book has water damage as well.

The epilogue is on another level.

The book tells the reality of what drug does to the young and to all around them. The book keeps you on ur toes and wanting the best for mic but also feeling a bit of disappointment, just like the dad feels. The best part of the whole book is the epilogue, stick around for it, goosebumps.

One of my favorites!

This book was so good and so sad at the same time wonderful story<3

My life is no longer the same

This book is EVERYTHING. ( if you read the book you get this phrase) beautifully illustrates the battle of a young man from the perspectives of others. I found myself personally attacks in some parts that related to my life experience but it was true. David Scheff not only out did himself in this book but he did so in life. He is the father any little girl or boy deserves. Seriously considering re reading. If you read anything this year... read Beautiful Boy!

Magnificent Work

This book is hard to put down and I managed to finish in a day. You can feel the depth of the author's emotions with every page, you can see his thought process and development throughout the entire book, and feel his anxiety and frustrations. This book was beautifully written and very descriptive. I am glad I did not watch the movie prior to reading this book. A must read.

Bravo!

As someone who is in recovery for crystal meth addiction, I highly recommend this book to those with addiction issues, their family members and to addiction specialists. David Sheff's insight into the disease of addiction and particularly the insidious nature of crystal meth is pitch perfect. I would also like to add that I attribute any "success" to my recovery process to having done many of the "best practices" outlined in his meticulous research of treatment options. I don't think I would have made it (thus far) if I had not gone to a treatment center with a specialized program for crystal meth (using the Matrix) which lasted for more than 4 months. I also went directly from there to a 2-year recovery home where I still reside. As Sheff has learned and written so eloquently, recovery (both for addicts and their families) is a process not an event, and it never ends.

Compelling and Courageous

David Sheff is a courageous man. Beautiful Boy is a great read, a horror story, and great reference material. It pulses with the unconditional love of a father in a way that makes me admire him and the guts it took to tell this story. For those of us with practicing and/or recovering alcoholics and addicts in our families, David's story is our story. Different drug, different town, different path....but same shame, frustration, anger, and the relentlessness of a disease with no bottom. I couldn't put this book down. Thank you, David Sheff, for your humanity and your gift of putting into words the unthinkable and the untouchable emotions in lives impacted by addiction.

Harrowing and redemptive

As a parent, I was transfixed by this harrowing story of a charming, intelligent boy's addiction and what it does to his family. You instantly like the boy, Nic Sheff, yet you can feel the father's pain. The drug problems begin when author David Sheff finds a bag of marijuana in his 12-year-old's backpack. By age 17 Nic is hooked on crystal meth, and he spirals into a decade-long pattern of drug abuse. He lies, steals, lives on the street and nearly dies. His heartbroken family takes the journey with him. At the end, with Nic in a shaky recovery, David Sheff has a life-changing moment when he realizes that "my children will live with or without me. It is a staggering realization for a parent, but one that ultimately frees us to let our children grow up." Sheff has good practical advice in this book, starting and ending with talking with your child early and often about drugs. There is also a huge amount of information about methamphetamines and how dangerous and pervasive their abuse is in this country. I learned a lot of scary information in this book, and I'm sure it will be a lifesaver for many.

Brilliant and Moving Parental Memoir

***** This is a stunningly written, intense and emotional memoir of a father's struggle to deal with his brilliant, charismatic, and caring son's addiction to methamphetamine. It is honest and authentic and raw and heart-rending and fascinating. It is unforgettable. As I read, I felt many emotions for both the father and son---everything from anger to sadness to grief to fear. I felt as though I was right there on the emotional roller coaster with the author. Even if you have no personal experience of a loved one's addiction, you will be moved by this father's struggle to cope with his son's substance abuse turmoils. Despite methamphetamine being this country's most problematic drug, many of us, including me, know very little about it, and may not initially feel too interested in finding out. However, the author's struggles and emotional journey are so poignant and compelling that any reader will find themselves caught up in this memoir, will benefit from what they learn and most of all, will be glad that they read it. If you know and/or love an addict, this book will be even more important---it will be vital---as you will find much to identify with and perhaps even be able to better process some of your own emotions. Highly recommended. *****