Bill Clegg’s follow-up to last year’s outstanding debut memoir Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man is equally outstanding. Ninety Days picks up after Bill leaves the rehab he ended up at the end of Portrait and follows his journey to recovery.
As he struggles to stay sober, the reader feels like they, too, are a part of the struggle. And those times when he relapses can be deeply affecting passages. (I cried about three times while reading this book.) Bill moves back to NYC and tries to build a community of people who support him and his recovery. It is not an easy task and he runs into many stumbling blocks. But while this book is certainly gut wrenching, it is also very uplifting.
His final chapter addresses something that is oftentimes overlooked on the recovery front. It shows his life five and a half years after reaching that ninety-day mark and how he still has to struggle with his inner demons. However, he has learned how to save himself and learned how to keep his life straight. And for those of you who are struggling with addiction, his two books are very inspirational.
Related articles
- Bill Clegg’s ‘Ninety Days’ Can be Burned Through at an Amphetamine’s Pace (Review) (popmatters.com)
- Book Review: Ninety Days By Bill Clegg (confessionsofapsychotichousewife.com)
- A Man in His Office: Author Bill Clegg (esquire.com)
- Recovery’s New Poster Boy: A Famous Addict Shares His Bumpy Road to Sobriety (alternet.org)
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