Rating: 
Summary: Racist Classist Megalomaniac Talks A Little About Heroin
Review: After hearing some decent things about this book, I was surprised at just how uninteresting and often offensive of a read it turned out to be. Marlowe is accurate in some of her depictions of heroin use in the East Village of New York and way off base in others. I chalk this up to everyone's experiences being different (however, I certainly don't think a one-bag-a-day habit with weeks off in between makes her an authority on addiction by any stretch of the imagination). What I don't understand is why she felt the need to go into such great detail about her rather boring life between her discussions of the dope world. Most of her anecdotes had little to no bearing on the story she was trying to tell and were mind-numbingly dull. I found her narrative to be very disjointed and incoherent. But what I found most repugnant was her better-than-thou attitude towards those of a lower class or darker skin tone (e.g. assuming dark-skinned men who didn't think to aspire to become more than security guards must not have gotten support or affirmation in their homes growing up, like she did). She herself says that she became interested in street-life and street people in order to increase her "coolness" factor. Sure she dabbled in drug use and in the East Village culture, but that does not make her an authority, and she does not paint a very true portrait of either. If you want a good portrayal of street life and heroin use from the inside, read Seth Morgan's Homeboy. If you want elitist drivel, this book should do the trick.
Rating: 
Summary: from one "high class junkie" to another...
Review: ann marlowe has done a courageous thing: told the world that its possible for an ivy league educated white upperclass female to do heroin, LOVE IT, and not revert to any of the tired cliches ("I lost everything, prostituted myself, and then lost everything some more!!!"). yet the one weakness of this book was the ease with which she kissed the drug goodbye: "i stopped doing heroin in 1996 and never thought about it again.." or the like. Believe me, its not that easy for SOME white upper middle class dope fiends...and then the answer is not the other tired cliche which, thankfully, ms marlowe does not delve into (i am talking about narcotics anonymous). anyway, marlowe's cool, distant, elusive prose is very appreciated in the world of "druggy lit", where hyperbole is a constant. I would have appreciated a bit more of why SHE loved heroin and a little less of how cool all her supermodel junkie friends are, but certain descriptions (such as the titles of the bags of east coast heroin, which is a far cry from the anonymous colored balloons of west coast heroin) were perfect and right on. so, two veins up and four syringes (out of five!)
Rating: 
Summary: Anticlimatic...unenlightening
Review: Ann Marlowe is a cleaver writer who has *constructed*, rather than written a not so cleaver book on addiction. Or has she even done that? We see her addiction to the cool, more-hip-than-thou scene of the East Village, certainly a taste for the drug and descriptions of those whose lives were truly ruled by it, but little of her own heart. It may have been more fulfilling if she could have demonstrated how she lost it due to her own disconection, isolation and selfishness of her use, but I suspect she didn't have it in her to begin with.
Users can - and do! - recover. One doesn't even need to subscribe to the NA model of addiction to see that. She hints at the end that her realization that life was going on without her, and that desire to be a part of it lead her to stop heroin. While her take on personal responsibility for her use is admirable, her denial of any grip on her life past her use is questionable.
Rating:
Summary: Anticlimatic...unenlightening
Review: Ann Marlowe is a cleaver writer who has *constructed*, rather than written a not so cleaver book on addiction. Or has she even done that? We see her addiction to the cool, more-hip-than-thou scene of the East Village, certainly a taste for the drug and descriptions of those whose lives were truly ruled by it, but little of her own heart. It may have been more fulfilling if she could have demonstrated how she lost it due to her own disconection, isolation and selfishness of her use, but I suspect she didn't have it in her to begin with.
Users can - and do! - recover. One doesn't even need to subscribe to the NA model of addiction to see that. She hints at the end that her realization that life was going on without her, and that desire to be a part of it lead her to stop heroin. While her take on personal responsibility for her use is admirable, her denial of any grip on her life past her use is questionable.
Rating:
Summary: A Tale of Heroin
Review: How to Stop Time was a good read. It was one of those books, that you would be assigned to read in a Rhetoric class, and you keep reading over the assigned pages, because it is so interesting. It is especially interesting to someone who has never done heroin. Ann Marlowe does not glorify nor does she speak down upon the drug. It may seem as though she does both, but she is just telling of a personal experience she has had.
This is not a book that I would read again, I only like to read books once, if I did read books more than once, this would be one of them.
Rating:
Summary: A Bizzare, Atypical Diary of a Dope Fiend
Review: I am torn on this book, absolutely torn. Marlowe's writing style is wonderful. She is obviously very intelligent. The problem *I* have here is that what she went through almost doesn't sound real. As in, I am not saying that she made up the fact that she got high. But, as a former heroin addict, I almost think that she either a) is exaggerating how many times she did heroin or b) is lying when she says she hasn't touched it, hasn't even THOUGHT ABOUT IT for years. It just doesn't sound real. And yeah, I know that everyone has a different experience with heroin. But usually not THAT much different. And something that worries me about this book is that it will encourage people to try it. I wish it came with a disclaimer. All that aside, I do think Marlowe's book is a decent piece of literature. Except for the fact that she rambles about things that are completely uninteresting and that have NOTHING to do with stopping time or doing heroin. And some of these anecdotes are really really really boring. Some of them are the kind of stories your grandmother tells you every time she sees you that weren't interesting or funny or lesson-filled the first time but you are forced to sit there and pretend that they are AND not say you've heard them thirty-seven times before. Just an opinion though. I'd leaf through it in the bookstore to make sure you'll like it before you buy it.
Rating:
Summary: Untrue
Review: It may seem incredible, but this book actually gave me the encouragement needed to experiment with the drug. Heck, I didn't know you can sniff it. And, according to the author, it's not very dangerous. Quitting entails little more than the equivalent of a really bad case of the flu.
I tried it. It's not as she describes. Not at all. It's been a while since I read it, and I must admit, I remember very little about it. Which speaks more to its content than to my memory. Very little humanity, heart, all the good stuff we're looking for in books, art, and life. I actually do feel sorry for the author. In any event, readers she be aware that her portrayal of heroine use is quite inaccurate and misleading. I speak from experience.
Rating:
Summary: ann marlowes heroin book
Review: ive read this book, but more importantly lived this craziness and will attest to the accuracy of her observations. as i read some of the passages i could actually taste the taste and started to sniffle,my nose began to run. it scared the hell out of me. i wish i could say that life style was behind me,but anyone who has done heroin will admit you never stop wanting it,that you sometimes still dream about it,and know intimately the situations you put yourself in. Jim Michaels
Rating:
Summary: Author Takes Responsibility For Her Choice To Use
Review: Not enough books have been written by financially successful, but not necessarily famous people that use or have used a "bad boy" drug like heroin or crystal methamphetimine. If you're looking for a "how drugs ruined my life and how I was saved by the 'just say no' crusade" or some such mumbo jumbo, do not read this book because you will be very disappointed. The author documents various periods from her life before, during, and after heroin, but not necessarily in that order. As a professional woman with a similar background as the author and an IV meth user myself, it was very refreshing to not encounter what I refer to as a "victum" mentality style of writing. What I mean is the author does not make excuses like "I had a bad childhood" or "I couldn't help myself, I was an addict," which is the bandwaagon trend in American society's portrayal of any illicit drug user these days. Instead, Marlowe describes her relationship with heroin as a choice, with no appologies, at different stages of her life, and throughout various circumstances. She includes her relationship with heroin and herself, heroin, her friends and herself, heroin, her lovers, and herself, as well as the heroin, career, and family triangles. Marlowe portrays a much more realistic view of the ups and downs of a middle class, daily user and entertains in the process, which is something Hollywood and mainstream American media rarely, if ever accomplish. Good read.
Rating:
Summary: Author Takes Responsibility For Her Choice To Use
Review: Not enough books have been written by financially successful, but not necessarily famous people that use or have used a "bad boy" drug like heroin or crystal methamphetimine. If you're looking for a "how drugs ruined my life and how I was saved by the 'just say no' crusade" or some such mumbo jumbo, do not read this book because you will be very disappointed. The author documents various periods from her life before, during, and after heroin, but not necessarily in that order. As a professional woman with a similar background as the author and an IV meth user myself, it was very refreshing to not encounter what I refer to as a "victum" mentality style of writing. What I mean is the author does not make excuses like "I had a bad childhood" or "I couldn't help myself, I was an addict," which is the bandwaagon trend in American society's portrayal of any illicit drug user these days. Instead, Marlowe describes her relationship with heroin as a choice, with no appologies, at different stages of her life, and throughout various circumstances. She includes her relationship with heroin and herself, heroin, her friends and herself, heroin, her lovers, and herself, as well as the heroin, career, and family triangles. Marlowe portrays a much more realistic view of the ups and downs of a middle class, daily user and entertains in the process, which is something Hollywood and mainstream American media rarely, if ever accomplish. Good read.
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