If you’ve ever stood in front of the mirror and knew you’d be a better rock star than anyone ever dreamed, and later that night made it ever more true by getting drunk and higher than Jesus, then you’ll like this book. If you’ve ever lined up coke or heroin but didn’t have the guts to shoot it straight to your blood, you’ll love this book. If you’ve ever wondered why people do drugs even when it’s killing them and they know it, this book will help you understand. And if you think that all junkies are nothing but degenerates, then this book will change your mind.
A major ingredient in the Seattle punk and legendary grunge scene was heroin. Tom Hansen played a part in both, first as a musician then as a heroin dealer. Of course, he also became an addict.
In his new memoir, American Junkie, published by Emergency Press, Hansen gives us a gripping first-hand account of a life ravaged by heroin; from aspiring musician to a ‘broken down junkie”, from the depths of addiction to cleaning up his act and going back to school (Hansen eventually earned his MFA). It is a trip through the dark side of the grunge movement, a close-up look at many of the arms that were under the plaid shirts.
In American Junkie Hansen takes us on a journey that for many is as American as apple pie.
Here’s the trailer:
Website for the book
Reviews:
Jeffrey Long at Crosscut, A surprisingly artful memoir of drug addiction and resilience
Short review at KEXP’s Scribes Sounding Off
Hansen reading from American Junkie at Seattle’s Pilot Books: