Blackout cover art

Blackout

Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget

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Blackout

By: Sarah Hepola
Narrated by: Sarah Hepola
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About this listen

It's such a savage thing to lose your memory, but the crazy thing is it doesn't hurt one bit. A blackout doesn't sting or stab or leave a scar when it robs you. Close your eyes and open them again. That's what a blackout feels like.

For Sarah Hepola, alcohol was 'the gasoline of all adventure'. She spent her evenings at cocktail parties and dark bars where she proudly stayed till last call. Drinking felt like freedom, part of her birthright as a strong, enlightened 21st-century woman.

But there was a price. She often blacked out, waking up with a blank space where four hours should be. Mornings became detective work on her own life. What did I say last night? How did I meet that guy?

She apologized for things she couldn't remember doing, as though she were cleaning up after an evil twin. Publicly she covered her shame with self-deprecating jokes, and her career flourished, but as the blackouts accumulated, she could no longer avoid a sinking truth. The fuel she thought she needed was draining her spirit instead.

A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure - the sober life she never wanted. Shining a light into her blackouts, she discovers the person she buried as well as the confidence, intimacy and creativity she once believed came only from a bottle.

Her tale will resonate with anyone who has been forced to reinvent themselves or struggled in the face of necessary change. It's about giving up the thing you cherish most - but getting yourself back in return.

©2015 Sarah Hepola (P)2015 Hachette Audio
Addiction & Recovery Alcoholism Indigenous Creators Mental Health Awareness Social Sciences Substance abuse Adventure Comedy
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Frank, real, relatable. The writer is honest and humble, a great read for anyone new or already in recovery for Alcoholism or drug addiction.

Blackout

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I was looking for stories on sobriety & was hesitant with this one as I thought it'd be a boring story of someone's life & bla bla but I was really hooked right from the start, this book is engaging and insightful. I highly recommend and thank the author for sharing her story. I believe it will help me on my own journey to sobriety.

engaging & honest

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An honest tale of a woman, her demons and all the reasons why. Easily identifiable.

Something in it for all of us

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I loved the rawness and honesty in this story, it draws you in from the very first page funny, sad, shocking.....life itself

loved it

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This memoir resonated with me on a level that I was not expecting. So many parallel recounts, memories, and experiences that Sarah describes with such colour and grit. I am so grateful to have found her story during my early sobriety and the encouragement it has given me to live my best sober life.

Raw, Honest and Evoking!

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Sarah’s story is a different kind of sober journey to some of the other books out there. She is brutally honest about her life and relationship with alcohol and her courage to share this publicly should be commended. There will be many people still suffering under the addiction of alcohol who will relate to Sarah’s love of the booze and her journey with finally quitting. Highly highly recommend.

Captivating and brutally honest

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Was a great book.really conceded with the character and the story..will be listening to it again.

great book

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I’ve read/listened to a lot of quit lit and for some reason I just couldn’t engage with Sarah.
I admire the brutal honesty if the story but I found it weirdly monotonous given how destructive her story was.
Perhaps it’s a tone of voice issue.

Not for me

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A brilliantly written truth about life with and without alcohol. What a gift to any who has been there, or who hasn't.

Brilliant!

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Well written and informative a story that has ramifications for a generation of 79"s women. A tough but enjoyable read. Helped me understand my issues.

A very connecting tale

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