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39
Don’s Reviews
The Biology of Desire: Why addiction is not a disease
by Marc Lewis (2015)
These Things Happen
by Greg Fleet (2015)
o start, let me suggest that two
more different books, two more
different approaches and
messages, yet with similar underlying
themes, surely would be difficult to
nominate.
I confess, to my everlasting shame, I’d
never heard of Greg Fleet. Sorry Mate.
So I used faithful old Dr Google, hit
YouTube,
and watched a whole series
of his acts. Verdict: he IS very funny,
with a bite. He’s also frank and tells it
like it is, or at least (we hope for his
sake) was, and now never will be
again. When we look at the other book
do remember this:
Greg Fleet wanted
to change
.
Finding something at random to give
you an idea, the chapter of Greg’s
book,
‘You must be joking’,
is followed
by a weird chapter on
‘attempted
murder’
and
‘the nature of friendship’.
There’s a lot of Woody Allen in his
standup-comic days in Fleet. He may
not think so, and after all, the young,
‘pre-movie days’ Woody is very laid
back and asks his audiences to allow
him into their hearts, whereas Fleet is
right in your (fill in the adjective of
your choice, and guess what his usually
is) face; we can find a prime example
on
YouTube
in his reply to the
Englishman who asked why Australia
killed their Aborigines –
But
that
wasn’t US,
he retorts,
it was YOU!
).
Allen, however, remains an excellent
point of comparison because it helps us
to see exactly the knife’s edge humour
of Fleet compared to his. And his book
reflects this: heart on the shoulder,
serious with most serious warnings, yet
craving something from us.
Understanding? Warning? Perhaps
that’s the closest we’re going to get.
He’s not after forgiveness, that’s for
sure.
His betrayal of the kind journo, Lisa, is
the ultimate or final straw. Apart from
one major lapse it appears to have
sorted him out. The book’s a wild ride,
but it’s fascinating and extremely
revealing. I suspect the title was chosen
with a great deal of care.
Marc Lewis has written a detailed
stunner. I mean literally. I started by
my usual ‘toe in the water’ approach
and was locked in once I got near
Chapter Three (
‘Natalie’s story’.)
It’s
compellingly informative as well as
being one of the stories. I just didn’t
know about OxyContins and their pals,
in terms of preference to heroin as
relaxing drugs without (necessarily)
such addictive dangers. However their
cost, as compared to heroin, made their
purchase prohibitive (in North America
anyway) as the strengths and volumes
were increased. Don’t misunderstand
though: the Oxys are unquestionably a
possible, even likely, addictive threat,
as are many narcotics. However the
heroin, its availability, and its costs
T