Books on Writers and Alcohol?

September 11, 2006 11:39 AM

I'm looking for books dealing with writers and alcohol, or writers writing about alcohol. I own four books on the subject: The Thirsty Muse: Alcohol and the American Writer Alcohol and the Writer A Drinking Companion: Alcohol and Writers' Lives The Muse in the Bottle: Great Writers on the Joy of Drinking
posted by Gnostic Novelist to writing & language (21 comments total)

Grab "The Journals of John Cheever." Extremely moving and candid meditations on his life problems, most of which revolved around booze and the lack thereof.
posted by Gordion Knott at 11:45 AM on September 11, 2006 [2 favorites has favorites]

Two books by journalists:

Pete Hamill--A Drinking Life
Caroline Knapp--Drinking: A Love Story
posted by Prospero at 11:52 AM on September 11, 2006

Jim Atkinson, a long time writer for Texas Monthly , wrote a little book called The view from Nowhere that was about finding the best bars in America. It comes off much more as a road trip book than a real guide, and there was plenty of musing about alcohol in it. He's since gone on the wagon
posted by cosmicbandito at 11:56 AM on September 11, 2006

So... you're looking for non-fiction books? I'm not sure I follow "writers writing about alcohol".

Regardless, I offer up Paradise, by AL Kennedy.
posted by dobbs at 12:07 PM on September 11, 2006

Witness to the Fire: Creativity and the Veil of Addiction is a good book (it uses Dostovesky, Eugene O'Neill, Jean Rhys, and Jack London) that talks in general about addiction, and some about alcohol in particular.
posted by ejaned8 at 12:09 PM on September 11, 2006

You might really enjoy the three books that Frederick Exley wrote. They are fictional autobiographies that deal with his drinking. The first is called "A Fan's Notes." I found them to be among the best books I have ever read.
posted by flarbuse at 12:23 PM on September 11, 2006

I'll second the recommendation of Pete Hamill's A Drinking Life (and provide the Powell's link to it)
posted by terpia at 12:28 PM on September 11, 2006

The scholarly Equivocal Spirits is a good read (and by a former professor of mine).
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:31 PM on September 11, 2006

The mere mention of the combination of drinking and writing would not be complete without the mention of Charles Bukowski
posted by horsemuth at 12:52 PM on September 11, 2006

Moskva-Petushki. A Russian classic.
posted by londongeezer at 1:02 PM on September 11, 2006

Although I have yet to read it, A Tragic Honesty: The Life and Work of Richard Yates must deal with alcohol and writers, since Richard Yates was a raging alcoholic as well as an excellent writer. He wrote some fiction about raging alcoholic writers, too.
posted by scratch at 1:11 PM on September 11, 2006

So... you're looking for non-fiction books? I'm not sure I follow "writers writing about alcohol".

Well, both would do. For example, "The Muse in the Bottle" is poetry/fiction mostly.
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 1:18 PM on September 11, 2006

New Orleans author Poppy Z. Brite has been writing a series of books starting with Liquor: A Novel, featuring alcohol in many forms as a major theme.
posted by Mr. Gunn at 1:26 PM on September 11, 2006

The Crack-Up by F.Scott Fitzgerald
Under The Volcano by Malcolm Lowry
Big Sur by Jack Keroauc
posted by Fuzzy Monster at 1:32 PM on September 11, 2006

Keith Abbott's Downstream from Trout Fishing in America: A Memoir recounts Richard Brautigan's writing career, which included much booze. (Abbott was a close friend.)
posted by unclewilly at 1:34 PM on September 11, 2006

Drinking, Smoking, and Screwing: Great Writers on Good Times
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 2:04 PM on September 11, 2006

Jack London's autobiographical John Barleycorn deals quite a bit with his alcoholism, as well as chronicling some of his intriguing life.
posted by Sloben at 4:25 PM on September 11, 2006

Drink: A Social History of America
posted by Dr. Wu at 6:57 PM on September 11, 2006

Stephen King's On Writing is highly worthwhile in its own right, and touches on King's alcoholism and its impact on his writing.
posted by ewiar at 7:17 PM on September 11, 2006

Under The Influence: The Literature of Addiction may be another to consider. While not all selections are in reference to alcohol, there are quite a few.
posted by sillygit at 9:46 PM on September 11, 2006

Oh man, I wish I'd seen this earlier. I own (reprint of): The True Drunkard's Delight, by William Juniper - which has provided me with endless Bachic inspiration. Looks like there are some cheap copies here.
posted by punkbitch at 12:06 AM on September 25, 2006