Smashed: Story of a Drunken Girlhood

Rating:
Summary: So Young-How Could This Happen
Review:
So Young-How Could This Happen....this echos in my mind. How can someone so young be an addict, an addict to anything? But in this tell all book the author explains to you just how it happens. With determination and courage she writes an amazing book. She does so with wit as well.
Also recommended: Nightmares Echo by Katlyn Stewart, A Paper Life by Tatum O'Neil

Rating:
Summary: Riveting
Review: As the parent of three children, I found "Smashed" to be beautifully written, yet absolutely riveting in it's delivery. While the author delivers her message in an amazingly poetic fashion, the content is painful, and unfortunately, a too realistic description of the dangers that our children must address.

Too many of today's parents brush off under-aged drinking as "kids just feeling their oats" and mistakenly bolster their preposterous position with the slogan of "well at least they're not doing drugs". This misconception that alcohol is not a drug merely reflects their ignorance. Ms. Zailckas does a remarkable job of conveying the dangers of alcohol abuse, and paints a vivid and accurate picture of how today's college campuses turn a blind eye to that issue.

I applaud the author's honesty and commend her efforts to share her experiences in the hope of deterring other young adults from sharing in her folly.

I highly recommend this publication to all parents and to all students embarking on their college careers.


Rating:
Summary: A terrible sight for a sober man, and a worse one for a drun
Review: Perhaps the first aspect of this really well-written book to note (besides its being really well-written) is that for a memoir that confronts its author at her worst, most drunken and debauched self, the tone is surprisingly sober, even honest. And it is this honesty that lends credibility to Zailckas as she recounts in depth an adolescence and young adulthood of serial alcohol abuse. Throughout, Zailckas avoids seeming overly self-indulgent, opting instead to try to give a clear picture of how a 'responsible' alcoholic (oxymoron noted) functions in a world that is typical of many high school and college students.

The clarity (and maturity) of Zailckas's writing is impressive, especially for someone so young. She nails so many of the scenes in this book, and many of the images are striking in their poetry ... Zailckas noting that in old college photos she looks more interested in her drink than in the boy over whom she's draped, or the many hangover scenes in which her brain feels wrapped in a blanket.

It is easy to see how this book will appeal to both adults and children. There's very little sense of agenda here. In other words, Zailckas spends little time overtly imparting lessons or getting caught up in flowerly flights of writerly fantasy (she's more of a pistol, if anything), both of which can act as buzzkills. She keeps it simple, having faith in the power of her literary voice.

Rating:
Summary: You need to pick up this book
Review: Slip out the window and into the mysterious and exhilaratingly new world of drinking through the eyes of a young woman. Smashed is told in vivid snapshots covering the uneasy years of an adolescence in the pursuit of alcohol into the bleary and chaotic nights of college and onwards into the boozy adventures of an advertising assistant in New York City.

This is a story that explains how alcohol has become a right of passage into adulthood, how it has become a crutch for so many kids in social environments and how it can unfurl a blanket of inconsequence and unaccountability in an evening and leave the morning with haunting and distant revelations.

And beyond the subject matter this is a memoir that can be appreciated for its narration alone. The writing is nothing short of amazing. The author has a poet's gift for description that is both lucid and provoking.

"No one expects the past to run into the present. We don't know it will seep down on us like leaks from an apartment building."

This memoir gets my full marks.



Rating:
Summary: The secret is out
Review: Smashed is a beautifully written account of a problem actually quite common amongst young women. Parents who read this book may be frightened and shocked by all the drinking at such a young age, but as a woman in my early twenties, I have a feeling that for girls around my age the story of Smashed will be all too familiar. Zailckas narrates the memoir with a fresh voice and with an original and addicting style (a friend of mine who just finished the book now finds herself subconsciously narrating day-to-day activities in "Koren's voice") The book is a must read for all ages--I can't wait to see all the positive effects Smashed has in terms of controlling the binge-drinking lifestyle of today's young women.

Rating:
Summary: Smashing
Review: This book goes so far beyond the reviews I've read for it. It is sad, it is extremely funny, and once you start it you cannot put it down. The reviews are focusing on the alcohol, and while it surely is the theme, it is the writing the makes this book great.

Rating:
Summary: Good writing, frightening subject
Review: This is a well-written, seriously scary book that will likely have many readers cringing when they read about the problems alcohol led to for Zailckas. As someone with a young daughter, I found it to be both a cautionary tale and an engrossing memoir. For anyone who has an alcoholic or binge drinker in their family, you'll be able to relate on some level. For me, it was interesting to hear about the experience from the perspective of a young woman.

The author writes lucidly and poetically about her past, showing the effects of her lifestyle without ever trying to invoke pity for anything that happened to her in the past. It makes one wonder how common her story, or at least certain elements of it, are to many young women.

Although the material is often heavy and depressing, this one will keep your attention. A terrific and frightening account.

Rating:
Summary: What a read
Review: This memoir is not a typical "i was a drunk" book.

Zailcas has gone through some serious drinking in her short lifetime and has written a thoroughly honest and scary book about her experiences.

This is a hard book to read because it touches us on so many levels. The big question looming for me while reading this book, "is she even going to survive all the alcohol she has fed her body".

Zailckas has a way of writing her story without being overly dramatic although she does occasionally stray and start waxing a little poetic (this part I could have done withoutl) HOWEVER, she is extremely honest and doesn't spend alot of time preaching.

Basically, she is saying "this is my story, I was stupid and while I can't say that I will never go there again, I am going to do my best not to".

I got the impression that the author was still extremely fragile and I wanted to scream "WHERE ARE YOUR PARENTS IN ALL THIS" - yes, they are present in the book, but it felt to me as though they were always on the sidelines - basically clueless or working hard at being clueless.

An impressive piece of work. If you have a problem with alcohol or are in recovery now, read this book - its a winner.