SMASHED a story of drunkin girlhood

From earliest experimentation to habitual excess to full-blown abuse, twenty-four-year-old Koren Zailckas leads us through her experience of a terrifying trend among young girls, exploring how binge drinking becomes routine, how it becomes "the usual." With the stylistic freshness of a poet and the dramatic gifts of a novelist, Zailckas describes her first sip at fourteen, alcohol poisoning at sixteen, a blacked-out sexual experience at nineteen, and total disorientation after waking up in an unfamiliar New York City apartment at age twenty-two, when she realized she had to stop, and all the depression, rage, troubled friendships, and sputtering romantic connections in between. Zailckas's unflinching candor and exquisite analytical eye get to the meaning beneath the seeming banality of girls getting drunk. She convinces us that her story is the story of thousands of girls like her who are not alcoholics—yet—but who use booze as a short cut to courage, a stand-in! for good judgment, and a bludgeon for shyness, each of them failing to see how their emotional distress, unarticulated hostility, and depression are entangled with their socially condoned bingeing.


This book was ok...I probably wouldn't suggest it b/c there was no real climax or "Ah.Ha" moment. She also rambled from time to time about statics and things about drinking that really had nothing to do w/ the story. Just kinda like a page and 1/2 of her opinion on the commercializing of alcohol products or something randomly thrown in every now and then.

I give this one & 1/2 bookmarks mainly for the subject matter.

Random Quizes

You Are Like a Ferret

You are happy, carefree, and a total kid at heart. You have a ton of energy, and you're always up for having fun. You are a total charmer, and people can't help but be delighted when you're around. You are affectionate, social, and friendly. You love people as much as they love you.

What Pet Are You Like?

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You Communicate With Your Ears

You love conversations, both as a listener and a talker. What people say is important to you, and you're often most affected by words, not actions. You love to hear complements from others. And when you're upset, you often talk to yourself. Music is very important to you. It's difficult to find you without your iPod.

How Do You Communicate?

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You Are An Intro-Extrovert!

Sometimes you're social - sometimes you're shy You've got a bit of an Introvert / Extrovert split going on You enjoy all sorts of situations. Parties, small groups, and alone time. Too much of one, and you'll long for the other. You need variety! Chances are, you've got both serious and fun friends - and they don't get along.

Are You An Extroverted or Introverted Girl?

I'm baaaaaack

So I know its been a long time since I've written anything and the only thing I currently have to blame is Farm Town....an application on facebook has taken over my life! If your not aware of it then don't ask I wouldn't want anyone else to be subject to this type of addiction.

I did finish my book which I will review tomorrow sometime....my parents have moved as of late last week....and let me tell you what a pain in my (insert word here) that was/is....my mother I have decided is a hoarder. She has Rubbermaid tubs of nothing but mail ---

omg a pt just walked by and farted ...so disgustingly stinky --- I'm about to vomit

Anyways back to my mother and her junk. They went from a 2000sqft house to a 1bed apt. and instead of cleaning stuff out b/f the move she decided to take it w/ her so now she has an apt full of boxes and 2 yes 2 storage units. Now I will give her a bit of a break b/c they haven't' moved in 20yrs and I do understand how things can accumulate over time but my goodness... and it is so overwhelming to me b/c I try to be the opposite. I went over there last Friday and tried to help unpack and there is no organization to it at all. So I ended up unpacking a few boxes (throwing out a few things I know she won't miss while I had the chance) and then I was done. I don't know about anyone else but that just gave me too much anxiety ... too much stuff I just didn't know where to start...makes me freak out a bit.

So other than that nothing else has been going on... So the word on the street right now is that Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest -- technically it hasn't been confirmed but TMZ did say that he has died...Normally I wouldn't write about this but the thing is, is that its all the buzz around the ER right now....staff is turning on the news and trying to look it up on the internet...I understand he is the king of pop and some sort of an icon but I don't know I think its weird how people can get upset when famous people pass on ... as if they knew him or something...I guess I've never been that star struck.