Book Reviews Clean by Author David Sheff

Over breakfast yesterday morning we discussed the fascinating NYTimes book review of Clean, a book by David Sheff. The review had been published in the Times, by Abigail Zuger, M.D.

Dr. Zuger’s review, in the New York Times’ Science/Books section, helps any reader catch-up with the previous works of David Sheff. His previous publications have included “Beautiful Boy, All We Are Saying, The Last Interview, and Game Over: How Nintendo Zapped an American Industry, the last work obviously concerning the now-pandemic of video game addiction, as Scheff had predicted in 1993.

Dr. Zuger’s Review of the David Sheff Book

“Now comes Clean, less memoir than a guide for those just entering the terrain David Sheff knows so well. If the book represents a certain redundancy of subject, its likely audience — those who must watch as friends and family spiral away — cannot hear too many sympathetic reiterations of the same truths. It’s about the drug addiction disease and getting sober.”

“In Clean David Sheff changes perspective, writing as advocate and journalist rather than distraught father. Still, his storyline recreates that of Beautiful Boy, tracing the trajectory of addiction from cradle to rehab and beyond with the same question in mind. That is, how does a promising cleareyed kid from a good family wind up in an inconceivable sea of trouble?”

“His answer, bludgeoned home with the repetitive eloquence of the missionary, is entirely straightforward: The child is ill. Addiction must be considered a disease, as devoid of moral overtones as diabetes or coronary artery disease, just as amenable as they are to scientific analysis, and just as treatable with data-supported interventions, not hope, prayer or hocus-pocus.”

This review of Clean by David Sheff certainly led our breakfast discussion to further explore one of our core beliefs here, at Morningside Recovery — that of evidence-based therapy practices with our addiction treatment services. We also read the review of Sheff’s Clean in Psychology Today by Glenn C. Altschuler, Ph.D., the Professor of American Studies at Cornell University.

Understanding that addiction is a treatable disease is just the tip of the iceberg.  Doing something about it is next. David Sheff has been there. He knows the heartache of watching a child spiral down in addiction.  Morningside Recovery believes we can help a child of yours get clean and sober. Give us a call at 855-631-2135 to find out how.