Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Down the Drain by Julia Fox

371 reviews

dark sad tense medium-paced

Memoirs are always the best as audiobooks. This book was crazy,  so heartbreakingly sad at times and so honest. Definitely a great listen! 

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring sad fast-paced

No because..... I love a memoir, but I'm not historically blown away by celebrity's retelling of their life. Perhaps because she is not a self-proclaimed celebrity, I shouldn't be surprised that it does not exist in the same realm as other's I've tried to enjoy: this book is above and beyond. From the first chapter alone, I knew by the magnitude of the writing style that this book--no matter what would happen in the chapters of her life to follow--would knock my freaking socks off. It's real and raw and an ode to picking up the pieces of your life again and again. She doesn't shy from her faults and the ugliest parts of herself, and in that there is such an honestly beautiful portrayal of her humanity. I wish that more artists were more accepting of themselves, instead of allowing their shame and ego to change their story: your story is better with every bit of every one of your mistakes, Julia Fox's story is better with every one of her missteps. Though in contrast to my own **origin story**, her writing is deeply relatable and I'm now recommending this to: 

late-in-life lesbians
late 
late-in-life lesbians
bpd baddies
regular baddies
anyone who related to "mean girls" by charli xcx
late-in-life lesbians

When the book originally came out, I heard the rave and was weary after reading other celeb memoirs (not in the fact that their stories weren't necessary and worth telling, but because the writing was boring or in need of serious edits). Instead of buying myself a copy, I waited in my local library's queue behind 45 eager readers before eventually giving up. Having finally borrowed a copy from a friend, I'm kicking myself for not having a copy of my own.

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dark emotional reflective fast-paced

I wouldn't be where I am today without the countless mistakes I made to get here. It's okay to live with regret. It's not okay to let it consume you.

Holy shit !! i genuinely felt like laughing maniacally at parts of this just cause what a fucking life man! no one has lived more than julia fox. some parts of this were sooooo painful - i felt kin with the parts she discussed how her parents clearly didn’t like her or know what to do with her - but wow such important lessons within it. how is she still standing. how did she dedicate this to her dad? fuck kanye west 

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dark emotional sad tense

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

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I feel like I break out into a cold sweat every time I listen to this. Might finish at a later time, just not the vibe right now.

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dark reflective fast-paced

julia please some introspection I beg of you

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As far as memoirs go, this is book is just a telling of events without an ounce of introspection on Julia Fox' as a person. This is the first book I stopped reading this year. 

I admit that I don't know anything about her, and I've only heard her name once or twice. but even 70% into the book didn't give me a speck of who she is. There's no introspection that could explain her choices and actions. So, as a reader, I can only see her as a person who has a poor upbringing brought upon by neglectful parents, and so, she went through a lot in life. 

That's my whole takeaway from this memoir, that growing up with bad people around you, especially neglectful and abusive parents play a significant role in shaping and molding your personhood. In Julia's case, she lived a thousand lives surrounded by all sorts of bad influence. 

I had highlighted so many bad and terrible moments inflicted by her parents, friends and even herself in red that it's concerning. I was alarmed by how much she went through. But without introspection, she comes across poorly from my perspective. I don't care for the cruel and terrible people that were introduced because I don't need to justify their actions. But for a memoir, she leaves no explanation for her own decisions and choices which lead to bad influences in return. 

It was always, "I had sex with...", "I did drugs...", "I went to...", "I did..." without giving any reason. When the book did, it's a therapist diagnosing her as bipolar. But I think that makes for a poor justification for her. To me, without any reason outside her diagnosis, she doesn't hold herself accountable. Therefore, it appears like she's okay and entitled to being mean and cruel and a bad influence on others as well. 

So, this is not a memoir. This is just a telling of events.

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