Blackout - Sarah Hepola

Blackout

By Sarah Hepola

  • Release Date: 2015-06-23
  • Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 673 Ratings

Description

A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure -- the sober life she never wanted.
For Sarah Hepola, alcohol was "the gasoline of all adventure." She spent her evenings at cocktail parties and dark bars where she proudly stayed till last call. Drinking felt like freedom, part of her birthright as a strong, enlightened twenty-first-century woman.

But there was a price. She often blacked out, waking up with a blank space where four hours should be. Mornings became detective work on her own life. What did I say last night? How did I meet that guy? She apologized for things she couldn't remember doing, as though she were cleaning up after an evil twin. Publicly, she covered her shame with self-deprecating jokes, and her career flourished, but as the blackouts accumulated, she could no longer avoid a sinking truth. The fuel she thought she needed was draining her spirit instead.

A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure -- the sober life she never wanted. Shining a light into her blackouts, she discovers the person she buried, as well as the confidence, intimacy, and creativity she once believed came only from a bottle. Her tale will resonate with anyone who has been forced to reinvent or struggled in the face of necessary change. It's about giving up the thing you cherish most -- but getting yourself back in return.

Reviews

  • Stunning

    5
    By Camp Fashion
    Stunning, raw, intimate… the best writing I’ve read since Joan Didion. You have a gift, please write more…
  • Meh

    1
    By Jazz5764
    This got old, fast. Glad you’re sober, but…why write so much about how you miss consuming POISON—aka alcohol?
  • Excellent!

    5
    By Marriedtomoney
    Started reading this well before I stopped drinking (but I definitely had suspicions) after finding a recommendation for it in The Alcalde, finished it after I was seven months sober – thank you Sarah!
  • Loved this book

    5
    By MrsLevel
    I couldn’t put this book down. Parts were laugh out loud funny, and other parts were just sad. But all worth reading.
  • Blackout

    5
    By ALH1659
    This book is phenomenal!
  • Great AA Read

    5
    By Tsunamis Boy
    As an recovering alcoholic, I thought this book hit home. She embodies all the fears, resentments and heart aches that plague an active alcoholic. It’s a must read for any woman considering or active in recovery
  • For anyone goin through jt

    5
    By KMBERSMAMA
    This book is so raw and honest about alcoholism. Just about everything in the book everyone who has a drinking problem can relate too or if you want to get to understand what goes on in the minds of an alcoholics so you can understand.
  • Oblivion and Back and a better Oblivion

    5
    By Mullet4life
    Her words captured me. Plain and simple. I'm not stating her words are plain and simple, quite contrary Sarah's words are luxurious, raw, rude, and comforting. They are truth, her truth. I gobbled up this book so quickly, I made myself read it again right after at a purposely slower pace so I could truly consume each part. She made it so easy to relate to herself and to every character. Even the jerks.
  • How did this even get published?

    1
    By applerochez
    I haven't fallen victim to this kind of hype since Prozac Nation (which I tossed in the airport trash can). Maybe I have a low tolerance for white girls whining. Yes, I know both alcoholism and suicide are serious, important subjects. I just found it hard to sympathize with this author. I mean the worst thing that happens to her is she wakes up banging some guy in a hotel room. Sorry, chick, ever heard of freshman year? Also the references to Bobby Flay only reinforced my suspicions on this one: it's who you know. Skip this one.
  • Great read!

    5
    By For?
    Thank you so much for sharing Sarah. I love your story and can relate on so many levels. Thank you for helping me!