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meekoh's review against another edition
4.0
This book does an excellent job of conveying the human toll of the opioid crisis. It humanizes the crisis by including multiple first-hand accounts of user experiences and the impact on families.
However, I wish the book had better outlined the socio-economic factors that allow addiction to thrive. What makes a community more vulnerable to an addiction epidemic? How does it correlate with unemployment rates, family structure, or education? What healthcare approaches have had proven success? What laws hinder recovery? While the author does discuss some of these issues, I feel that a more academic structure was needed to clearly show causalities, systematic failings, and outline conclusions.
This book gives the impression that addiction is inevitable once an opioid prescription is written. Multiple studies have proven that this is simply not the case. It is also a fact that opioids give patients suffering from chronic pain the opportunity to live a normal life. It is important regulations evolve in ways that do not punish this demographic. While overprescribing is undoubtedly an issue, there are equally important underlying causes of addiction that would benefit from thorough analysis.
However, I wish the book had better outlined the socio-economic factors that allow addiction to thrive. What makes a community more vulnerable to an addiction epidemic? How does it correlate with unemployment rates, family structure, or education? What healthcare approaches have had proven success? What laws hinder recovery? While the author does discuss some of these issues, I feel that a more academic structure was needed to clearly show causalities, systematic failings, and outline conclusions.
This book gives the impression that addiction is inevitable once an opioid prescription is written. Multiple studies have proven that this is simply not the case. It is also a fact that opioids give patients suffering from chronic pain the opportunity to live a normal life. It is important regulations evolve in ways that do not punish this demographic. While overprescribing is undoubtedly an issue, there are equally important underlying causes of addiction that would benefit from thorough analysis.
mkwally91's review against another edition
Bad timing and felt like already knew the story.
rachel1216's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
A lot of stories but ultimately a thorough look at a piece of the opioid crisis history and impact on real people and communities.
wordly_adventures's review against another edition
Ran out of time before it was due
isacataldo's review against another edition
This did a good job at connecting the facts to human stories. Lots of interesting (and disheartening) information about our healthcare system / law enforcement.
toofondofbooks's review against another edition
5.0
This is such an important book and one I’m so glad I read but it was a tough read. I’ve been interested in the rise of the opioid epidemic for a few years now but even so this book was still so eye-opening to me. Macy gives the stats and the politics but she also really focuses on the personal giving us the stories of people from all walks of life who have ended up addicted to opioids in one form or another. This book made me angry at how people are being failed by the system but it was also incredibly moving, I felt so emotional as I got to the end. This is not an easy read but it’s a book I highly recommend.
This review was originally posted on my blog https://rathertoofondofbooks.com
This review was originally posted on my blog https://rathertoofondofbooks.com
itmustbemiriam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
5.0
Oof, this was such a tough but necessary read. The opioid crisis has been around for as long as I can remember, but seeing how it started makes me simultaneously angry and sad. So many people knew for such a long time that this was a problem, while pharma companies and doctors just continued to line their pockets. One of my favorite parts was the interviews with many different addicts, humanizing the crisis and giving a face and backstory to the addicted we may see or know. Really well written and deeply researched, this book is a must-read.