Overview

A brutally honest and sometimes humorous memoir of the author's struggle with alcoholism while dealing with a newborn. ""An intense, complex and disturbing story, bravely and beautifully told. I readDrunk Momwith my jaw on the floor, which doesn't happen to me that often.""-Lena Dunham Three years after giving up drinking, Jowita Bydlowska found herself throwing back a glass of champagne like it was ginger ale. It was a special occasion- a party celebrating the birth of her first child. It also marked Bydlowska's immediate, full-blown return to crippling alcoholism. In the gritty and sometimes grimly comic tradition of the bestselling memoirsLitby Mary Karr andSmashedby Koren Zailckas,Drunk Momis Bydlowska's account of the ways substance abuse took control of her life-the binges and blackouts, the humiliations, the extraordinary risk-taking-as well as her fight toward recovery as a young mother. This courageous memoir brilliantly shines a light on the twisted logic of an addicted mind and the powerful, transformative love of one's child. Ultimately it gives hope, especially to those struggling in the same way.

Full Product Details

9780143126508

Table of Contents

Reviews

[M]aternal tippling is a trendy topic on 'mom' blogs... But these chirpy, jokey accounts don't touch the dark spiral of addiction Toronto writer Jowita Bydlowska relives in this riveting account... Bydlowska is an evocative, talented and gutsy writer who appears willing to confess all... Bydlowska writes of watching other upscale stroller-pushing moms and wondering: do they hide mickeys in their diaper bags too? With this bracing book, others will now be asking that question as well. -- Maclean's It is a memoir that pushes at boundaries - what is private, what should perhaps be kept private, what we need to know, what we don't, what is insightful or just exhibitionism. [O]ne of the most talked about books of the season... --The Globe and Mail To understand this story in the guise of an addiction memoir is to misunderstand its worth.... Instead, this book is fresh within the context of a parenting memoir, one of a particular kind: A counterculture parenting memoir. [It] stands as an uncommonly perceptive chronicle of what it means to be an intelligent, urban parent trying to hold on to the rest of her life. As a writer she's got some chops. --National Post A compelling, raw look at her struggle with alcoholism, the addiction that swallowed [Bydlowska] after the birth of her son. --Elle (Canada) Drunk Mom is a stunning, harrowing read. Why harrowing? Not just because of the dramatic story, of a new mother at the edge of her tether. And not only because of Jowita Bydlowska's skill as a writer, and the crisp, original way she tells it. What's most harrowing about Drunk Mom is that you can't stop reading it--this, the dark, now-told tale that lurks in the shadow of every seemingly normal family. --Ian Brown, author of The Boy in the Moon A brave, brilliant and scathing self-portrait. Full of energy and insight. If Frida Kahlo had been a writer, she might have been compared to Jowita Bydlowska. --Patricia Pearson, r

[M]aternal tippling is a trendy topic on 'mom' blogs... But these chirpy, jokey accounts don't touch the dark spiral of addiction Toronto writer Jowita Bydlowska relives in this riveting account... Bydlowska is an evocative, talented and gutsy writer who appears willing to confess all... Bydlowska writes of watching other upscale stroller-pushing moms and wondering: do they hide mickeys in their diaper bags too? With this bracing book, others will now be asking that question as well. -- Maclean's It is a memoir that pushes at boundaries - what is private, what should perhaps be kept private, what we need to know, what we don't, what is insightful or just exhibitionism. [O]ne of the most talked about books of the season... --The Globe and Mail To understand this story in the guise of an addiction memoir is to misunderstand its worth.... Instead, this book is fresh within the context of a parenting memoir, one of a particular kind: A counterculture parenting memoir. [It] stands as an uncommonly perceptive chronicle of what it means to be an intelligent, urban parent trying to hold on to the rest of her life. As a writer she's got some chops. --National Post A compelling, raw look at her struggle with alcoholism, the addiction that swallowed [Bydlowska] after the birth of her son. --Elle (Canada) Drunk Mom is a stunning, harrowing read. Why harrowing? Not just because of the dramatic story, of a new mother at the edge of her tether. And not only because of Jowita Bydlowska's skill as a writer, and the crisp, original way she tells it. What's most harrowing about Drunk Mom is that you can't stop reading it--this, the dark, now-told tale that lurks in the shadow of every seemingly normal family. --Ian Brown, author of The Boy in the Moon A brave, brilliant and scathing self-portrait. Full of energy and insight. If Frida Kahlo had been a writer, she might have been compared to Jowita Bydlowska. --Patricia Pearson, n

Author Information

Jowita Bydlowska was born in Warsaw, Poland, and moved to Canada as a teenager. Her work has appeared in various publications, including Salon and the Huffington Post. She lives in Toronto, Canada, with her son and his father.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available