Overall I loved this book, especially because I want Ruby Warrington to read me everything. This takes a look at sobriety through the lenses of wellness, marketing/capitalism, culture, and social justice — an approach I found super-accessible and non-judgemental. There are a few spots that veer into the woo too much for my liking, but it is nonetheless a very solid manifesto for non-absolutist sobriety.
Of special note was one of the later chapters when Warrington probes how sobriety might fit into social justice. It really resonated with me to think about self-care not just as a way to continue doing social justice work, but as a way to be as effective as possible at that work, and that self-care literally means keeping yourself healthy (as opposed to what I call, “pop-self-care,” which basically means keeping yourself massaged and relaxed.) Another point that landed hard for me: “What’s the real benefit to your life of consuming alcohol?” Whatever that is for you, how does it stack up against the benefits of not consuming alcohol? Really loved how much this book got me thinking.
Sooo, I just learned about the 250 word requirement. I like fast, snappy book reviews. But I will do my best in the future to hit that 250 mark more gracefully than I have in these first few reviews of my first cannonball in which I’m totally resorting to filler. What can I say? This book review feels done to me! And I’m newly shocked by how long 250 words is. This is probably a product of google/youtube brain. In the past decade, as I’ve spent more and more time online and seen memes become their own communication modality, I most definitely have seen my recall abilities and attention span decline. 250 words sounds short, but compared to the book reviews I can be bothered to read or write, it’s a tome. I see now that Cannonball is going to be a reading AND writing exercise for me.