Mark as Recovery Story interprets the Gospel of Mark in terms of alcoholism and Twelve-Step recovery. Identifying numerous previously unrecognized ambiguities in the gospel's Greek text, John Mellon portrays Mark's mysterious "insider" audience as a fellowship of ex-inebriates turned waterdrinkers, alcoholics whose spirituality of powerlessness resembled that of Alcoholics Anonymous today. Mellon discovers in Mark, the most enigmatic of the Jesus narratives, genre features of the former drunkard's sobriety story, and he reconstructs the first-person story Jesus would have told on his return to Galilee, culminating in his Last Supper words about wine and his Gethsemane prayer for removal of the cup.

A Moment of Clarity On Memorial Day, 1974, an itinerant drunk named Pablo made a spiritual discovery. Hunkered on a highway west of the Palouse, he glimpsed a life in disarray, shorn of insight, heading nowhere and running scared It takes a moment to recognize a life as your own. One thing is certain: that turning point, without light or air, from which hed struggle as from an undertow, was in fact a divine panic: terror not of heartbreak or brain seizure, but of spiritual death, the heart vacant and staggering without purpose. On that point hes definite. Sick, broke, without future, at a point of no return, a man is thrust face to the wall. On that day, in that hour, a breeze whispers in the trees, or it doesnt. Still to recall it makes him shudder.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer transcended its cult-comic roots to achieve television success, spawning the spinoff series Angel and an academic movement along the way. This scholarly treatment takes a multidisciplinary approach to Buffy's fandom, which has expressed itself through fiction, videos, music, art, and other media. Ten essays analyze the sociology and anthropology of the fan community and how it uses the Internet to share its passion.

In this outstanding, funny, and edgy debut, Going tells an engaging story of two unlikely friends who meet when a high-school dropout talks a boy out of suicide--and who ultimately save each other.

In Dancing with Demons, Patricia Easteal weaves a story that is more than a tale; it's a journey into the tempestuous psyche of Franny/Frankie/Francine, otherwise known as Triple F. Travel with Triple F as she grapples with her inner demons and witness her perilous dance with trauma and its toxic effects, from starvation to substance abuse. Experience an odyssey that not only unveils the profound impacts of a traumatic childhood and turbulent adulthood on mental health, but also reveals the transformative power of therapy and twelve-step programs, leading to the light of self-discovery and redemption.

With striking intimacy and candor, Eric Clapton tells the story of his eventful and inspiring life in this poignant and honest autobiography. More than a rock star, Eric Clapton is an icon, a living embodiment of the history of rock music. Well known for his reserve in a profession marked by self-promotion, flamboyance, and spin, he now chronicles, for the first time, his remarkable personal and professional journeys. Born illegitimate in 1945 and raised by his grandparents, Eric never knew his father and, until the age of nine, believed his actual mother to be his sister. In his early teens his solace was the guitar, and his incredible talent would make him a cult hero in the clubs of Britain and inspire devoted fans to scrawl “Clapton is God” on the walls of London’s Underground. With the formation of Cream, the world's first supergroup, he became a worldwide superstar, but conflicting personalities tore the band apart within two years. His stints in Blind Faith, in Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, and in Derek and the Dominos were also short-lived but yielded some of the most enduring songs in history, including the classic “Layla.” During the late sixties he played as a guest with Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan, as well as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and longtime friend George Harrison. It was while working with the latter that he fell for George’s wife, Pattie Boyd, a seemingly unrequited love that led him to the depths of despair, self-imposed seclusion, and drug addiction. By the early seventies he had overcome his addiction and released the bestselling album 461 Ocean Boulevard, with its massive hit “I Shot the Sheriff.” He followed that with the platinum album Slowhand, which included “Wonderful Tonight,” the touching love song to Pattie, whom he finally married at the end of 1979. A short time later, however, Eric had replaced heroin with alcohol as his preferred vice, following a pattern of behavior that not only was detrimental to his music but contributed to the eventual breakup of his marriage. In the eighties he would battle and begin his recovery from alcoholism and become a father. But just as his life was coming together, he was struck by a terrible blow: His beloved four-year-old son, Conor, died in a freak accident. At an earlier time Eric might have coped with this tragedy by fleeing into a world of addiction. But now a much stronger man, he took refuge in music, responding with the achingly beautiful “Tears in Heaven.” Clapton is the powerfully written story of a survivor, a man who has achieved the pinnacle of success despite extraordinary demons. It is one of the most compelling memoirs of our time.

This well researched, painstakingly documented book provides detailed information on the right-wing evangelical organization (Oxford Group Movement) that gave birth to AA; the relation of AA and its program to the Oxford Group Movement; AA's similarities to and differences from religious cults; AA's remarkable ineffectiveness; and the alternatives to AA. The greatly expanded second edition includes a new chapter on AA's relationship to the treatment industry, and AA's remarkable influence in the media.