After
reading his biographical work of art, Amphetamine Psychosis, I am officially placing
Daniel Vlasaty on my Mount Rushmore of writing Gods. I can’t even begin to
articulate how well written this book is. Due to its in-your-face
representation of drug use and abuse, it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. In fact,
it’s more a bitter cup of espresso if anything; it’s a quick shot which burns
going down and leaves you wide eyed with your nervous system twitching from
what you just put it through.
The
manner in which Vlasaty strips himself and his soul bare and finds a way to let
you into his world of pain and anguish is a thing of beauty. It’s simplistic in
nature, yet the depth that his words cut into you is a dichotomy that few
writers can accomplish, let alone master in the manner Vlasaty has. His prose
is short and concise on every page, yet each page leaves the reader exhausted
from the emotional journey they have taken with Vlasaty as their guide.
The
best way to share this book’s beauty is to quote a passage to let you enjoy the
brutal honesty that graces the pages of what will go down as one of the best
books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. This part of the book is
detailing his self-injury inflicted through burning a scar onto himself with a
hot nail while he was under the effects of drugs:
One scar for every time
I wished for death. One scar that could be the one that is my death.
One scar that is the
life and death of me.
One scar that will tell
the world who I really am.
They’ll never go away.
Not completely. These scars. And I wear them proudly. I don’t try to hide them.
Because there is no hiding them. They’re right there….For all the world to see.
Reminders of myself.
Each scar, a tattoo.
Each scar, a piece of me. A piece of my life. A piece of my death.
Each scar, a failure.
The
pure brutal honesty of a man bearing his soul come through these pages and will
burn a scar onto the reader’s soul. This book will make every reader a fan of
Vlasaty. The book is only available through print on demand order at Lulu.com (http://www.lulu.com/us/en/shop/daniel-vlasaty/amphetamine-psychosis/paperback/product-22157739.html).
This is a must add for every lover of noir, every lover of honest, soul
searching biographies, and every lover of stories of dark souls desperate for
redemption in the face of addiction.
I
cannot recommend this book enough.
Reviewed by Derrick Horodyski.
