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Reviews tagging 'Antisemitism'
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe
33 reviews
sarah_who_reads's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I adore Patrick Radden Keefe and would read anything he wrote, but this one is near and dear to my heart. It explores the Sackler family and their connection to the opioid epidemic that has ravaged the US as a whole, but especially Appalachia. In Empire of Pain, Radden Keefe traces the rise of the Sackler dynasty, beginning with its origins in Arthur Sackler's high school side hustle, and its inextricable connection to explosion of opioid addictions in the late 90s and early 00s. Radden Keefe is journalistic, one of the US' best journalists currently writing, but as one reads through, it becomes obvious, over and over again, why his measured tone belies a rage simmering just below the surface. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the opioid epidemic or Appalachia or medicine, or otherwise, anyone interested in the art world and the misdeeds of some of its most prominent benefactors.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Suicide
Minor: Antisemitism
brinnet's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Very interesting look into a wealthy American family and their role in modern drug addiction.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Drug use, Drug abuse, Medical content, Child death, Addiction, Grief, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Toxic relationship, Antisemitism, and Racism
dancingdugongs's review against another edition
dark
informative
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Addiction, and Drug use
Minor: Antisemitism and Suicide
mc235's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I listened to the audiobook of this and was gripped throughout. I think I might have struggled with the first section of the book had I been reading it, but overall for such an enormous book it was very well paced. Incredibly thorough indictment of the Sacklers and the pharmaceutical industry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Antisemitism
_fallinglight_'s review
challenging
dark
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
Surreal, insightful, albeit and clinical deep dive into the depraved and unhinged Sackler criminal billionaire family. This book is one of many definitive proofs that the billionaire is incompatible with humanity at this point and greed is an addiction as equally destructive and demoralizing as any substance addiction if not more or worse. The lengths the rotting rich go to to keep their corrosive money are so twisted but it's also morbidly impressive how they weave the web of connections and buy their way into getting the results they want. Particularly this family who honestly wouldn't have made it without ass kissers and enablers and unscrupulous people making their perversity possible bc most of them are so offensively insensitive and stupid.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Classism, and Death
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Antisemitism, Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Suicide
____emily____'s review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Antisemitism, Classism, Grief, and Death
Minor: Suicide and Mental illness
samarakroeger's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
4.25
fascinating and extensive look at the villain origin story behind the opioid epidemic. as addicting to read as oxy (although this is certainly a slow release).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Suicide, Antisemitism, and Drug abuse
aegagrus's review against another edition
3.25
Empire of Pain is a smart and thorough chronicle of three generations of the notorious Sackler family. Radden Keefe may write in the dramatized language commonly found in tales of “true crime”, but his credibility is bolstered by the years he’s put into this story and the vast quantity of source material he’s able to cite. His book does many things well. It provides a fascinating case study of the ways in which ill-gotten wealth can change a family over time, altering each generation’s proclivities and character. It effectively demystifies relatively arcane fields like pharmaceutical advertising and bankruptcy law. It doesn’t spare those peripherally implicated in the Sackler saga – well-known political figures from both major parties, doctors, lawyers, consultants, and museum administrators. Most importantly, it elucidates where we stand today, unflinchingly demonstrating the insufficiency of the ways in which the Sacklers have been “held to account”.
For all its thoroughness, Empire of Pain has a fairly narrow focus. Radden Keefe readily admits that his book is not intended to be a broad sociological account of the opioid crisis. At times, this tight focus on the Sacklers leaves the reader with questions. Radden Keefe does a pretty good job separating out the impact of Purdue Pharma from that of other opioid suppliers, citing empirical studies to show the close association between Purdue’s activities and the emergence of the crisis writ large. Purdue was an early and aggressive mover; in ascribing responsibility for the crisis, to start at Purdue is entirely justified. In other instances, though, the centrality of the Sacklers to this narrative may have led Radden Keefe to overstate their centrality – on the birth of medication-based psychiatry, for instance, or even on the ideological battles over how the medical field should approach chronic non-malignant pain (which is not to say that the Sackler’s astroturfing did not have a major impact in this regard).
It is also notable that a full third of the book is spent on the activity of Arthur Sackler, the family patriarch, who was already dead by the time OxyContin was created. The ways in which Arthur shaped the family’s trajectory are certainly relevant, getting the Sacklers started in the worlds of art and philanthropy, passing down an array of corporate structures, and inculcating deeply held ideologies in the succeeding generations. Arthur’s role in creating modern pharmaceutical advertising and his aggressive profiteering off of non-opioid tranquilizers (namely Valium) are also interesting. Nonetheless, too much time is probably spent mythologizing the dynasty’s origins, time which could perhaps have been better spent providing somewhat broader context for later material about the marketing of OxyContin and the ensuing litigation.
Empire of Pain is, all in all, well worth reading. If the reader is seeking to understand the opioid crisis itself, this book is probably not a perfect starting point. If the reader already has some background in the opioid crisis, however, or is primarily interested in a case study of the corrupt abuse of corporate, legal, and political power, Empire of Pain is an excellent choice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Chronic illness, and Medical content
Moderate: Suicide, Antisemitism, and Injury/Injury detail
megang519's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Grief, Infidelity, Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Death
Moderate: Cancer and Chronic illness
Minor: Suicide attempt, Antisemitism, Suicide, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
libbyhb's review against another edition
dark
informative
medium-paced
5.0
After listening to Say Nothing, I immediately lucked out and got a skip-the-line copy of this from Libby! This was so well done, as expected. I liked following the journey through Arthur Sackler's life, and then through the development of Purdue Pharma and impact of OxyContin, and that Patrick Radden Keefe focused on the thread of the Sacklers' obsession with naming philanthropy and the later "un-naming". Obviously it was rage-enducing, but I feel like I learned so much. Can't wait to read more PRK!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Addiction, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Suicide and Death
Minor: Antisemitism