DESCRIPTION:
i picked up 'the night of the gun,' a memoir written by current new york times columnist and former cokehead/alcoholic david carr, and expected it to read like most accounts of substance abuse i've thumbed through in the past (and let me assure you i have thumbed through my fair share). and i got what i expected. sort of.

if you're looking for a well-researched (carr backs up his story with interviews, articles, and official records in an effort not to repeat the oprah-enraging mistakes of this decade's most famous memoir fabricator) and sometimes disturbing account of the perils of shooting, snorting, and freebasing cocaine -- as well as the redemptive power of recovery -- you'll get it. but, as i was happy to discover, 'the night of the gun' is much more than that. in addition to grim details of carr's days as an abusive, maniacal drug addict and inspirational tales of single parenting and getting clean (i admittedly teared up a few times), the reader gets something more unique and ultimately more resonant: a nuanced look into the subjective and largely unreliable nature of our own memories.

as the book progresses, carr (and the reader alongside him) discovers that some firmly-believed truths about his past are, in fact, untrue, that some of his most vivid memories are, in fact, inaccurate. what carr himself once regarded as certain is repeatedly cast into doubt by friends, family, and other, more sober witnesses. how could this be?

carr reminds the reader that memory is not a reiteration, but rather a reconstruction of the past, one that serves to corroborate our own myths. oftentimes, what we don't remember is just as telling as what we do.

while carr's story (former junkie makes good, raises twin daughters on his own, gets a job at one of the most prestigious publications in the world) is compelling, it is the way in which he investigates and uncovers the truth that makes 'the night of the gun' such a worthwhile and intriguing read.

the first half of the book is good; the second half is great. so don't wimp out at page 200.

LINKS:
http://www.nightofthegun.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/magazine/20Carr-t.html?scp=50&sq=&st=nyt