Review:
"The best volume on charlie for years...addictive" (Observer)
"The most comprehensive and intelligent history of cocaine available today" (The Times)
"Stick your hooter into this volume and you won't be able to stop until you've sniffed out all of its contents" (Time Out)
From the Publisher:
A riveting read
I'll be honest: if a writer comes to you, and says they want to write a book about cocaine, you are immediately suspicious. You imagine the writer will sign a contract, take the first part of the advance, and disappear on a bender. It has happened. So it was important when we read Dominic's outline for his book that we knew what he was like as a person, whether or not he was the kind of guy who would take the money and run. And it was immediately clear that he wasn't going to do anything of the sort - here was someone who found the whole subject fascinating, and could convey that fascination well. This matters because the history of cocaine, as Dominic makes clear, is littered with the names of people who have been seduced by the drug; as the author writes, cocaine is about two things - money, and more money. The amount of money is literally incredible, and its seductive power no less extraordinary than the product itself. The story of cocaine isn't just about crime and profit, though; it's also about psychoanalysis, about empire building, about exploitation, about emancipation, and, in the end, about power. To tell the story of the twentieth century without reference to this drug and its contribution is to miss a vital strand of social history and Dominic amply sets the record straight in his book. That the book eventually makes clear the harm cocaine does, to individuals as well as society, is only one small part of its impact. We've had some booksellers refuse to stock it, as I can only suppose they thought the book glorifies drugs. How wrong can they be.
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