UNDRUNK: A Skeptic’s Guide to AA, by A. J. Adams, © 2009
As a long time member of Alcoholics Anonymous, I found this book to be a moderately entertaining peek inside the complex organization that is AA. It’s a good basic primer for folks who are wondering if AA might work for them, with the author explaining his personal experience with the 12 Steps (one year when the book was written,) including his misgivings and misconceptions going in and lessons learned.
The book suffers, however, from overlong explanations which became tedious very quickly. I was also disappointed that the author didn’t cite his sources in those sections dealing with AA history.
I have mixed feelings about this book. Anyone wishing to know what AA attendance is like would do better to go to a dozen or so meetings and get the experience first hand. For those who think that would be too time consuming, following a dozen or so AA recovery blogs or forums for a month would give a more complete picture. Still, for those with more money than time, this book would be a worthwhile read. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
