The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction [Kindle Edition]

Dirk Hanson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A savvy, big-hearted exploration of the latest investigations into addiction science." --Kirkus Discoveries

"Well researched, written and edited, providing the most current/contemporary information available." --Midwest Book Review

Product Description

''The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction'' by Dirk Hanson is a new book for anyone concerned with the care and healing of addiction, substance abuse, and the latest advances in the area of addiction science. Author Hanson has written a vital resource for friends and families of addicts and alcoholics, as well as health groups and substance abuse professionals.

In ''The Chemical Carousel,'' science writer Dirk Hanson takes the reader on a voyage through the heady world of addiction science, from the lab to the clinic to the junky on the street. Hanson explains the workings of common neurotransmitters and documents the direct effect drugs and alcohol produce on the reward pathways of the brain. He shows how scientists and treatment professionals have finally given us an answer to the perennial question about addiction: Why can't those people just say no?

Winner of a 2010 Independent Publisher Book Award in the Health/Medicine/Nutrition Category.

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 819 KB
• Print Length: 472 pages
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing; 1st edition (April 12, 2009)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00280LZB8
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #36,099 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #19 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Professional & Technical > Medical > Medicine > Internal Medicine > Neurology > Neuroscience
  • #19 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Medicine > Internal Medicine > Neurology > Neuroscience
  • #23 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Advice & How-to > Health, Mind & Body > Recovery > Alcoholism

More About the Author

Dirk Hanson is a freelance science writer and novelist. He is also the author of "The New Alchemists: Silicon Valley and the Microelectronics Revolution." He has worked as a business and technology reporter for numerous magazines and trade publications. He currently edits the Addiction Inbox blog and is senior contributing editor for the online magazine The Fix. He has contributed to Scientific American, California, Omni, and other magazines.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book On Addiction I have Ever read, April 25, 2009

By 

J. Forester (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction (Paperback)

"Cunning, baffling, powerful," is how the AA Big Book describes addiction, and as an addict myself, that description jibed very well with my experience.

Until now.

At the height of addiction the addict has no more idea why they use than family or friends - or what to do about it. But now, for the first time, Dirk Hanson has demystified the inexplicable. This book is a must read for addiction professionals, but also for all addicts, recovered or not, and those who love them. The language is clear and engaging, often reading like a good thriller, and the information provided is rock solid. A major contribution destined to elevate and further a critical discussion. This Chemical Carousel, simply put, will lessen the pain, hopelessness and confusion of all those who read it. There is hope and health and rational exploration and discovery within the pages of this book.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, an honest depiction of addiction, May 7, 2009

By 

John Graham "rock doc" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction (Paperback)

I grew up with an addict. My mother, sister, and I spent our lives tip-toeing around the house, hoping we wouldn't enrage our alcoholic father, avoiding the inevitable outburst, trying not to get hit. There was no way that my father could "just say no." After reading Dirk Hanson's book, The Chemical Carousel, I now know why. But this book isn't just about alcoholism. Hanson has written a thoughtful and thorough description of the complex world of addiction, regardless of the drug of choice. He systematically dismantles the world of addiction and he does it in a way that both the layman and the scientist may understand. Anybody who has struggled with addiction, who has lived with an addict, who knows someone who is an addict, whose job requires dealing with addicts, or anybody interested in knowing the world of the addict to better understand this disease, needs to read this book

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insight into the biology of addiction., April 25, 2009

By 

Dr. R. E. Hanson (Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction (Paperback)

Like Plato dispelling the mythology of the "flat earth" Hanson looks to science and critical thinking to begin to break down the mythology of addiction and substance abuse. Hanson uses an easy to read yet densely informative story line to bring the reader out of the wilderness of "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" to a detailed understanding of the biology and biochemistry that fundamentally underlie everyone's individual potential for addiction. Packed with eye opening information, "The Chemical Carousel" is a must read for anyone interested in a deeper understanding of the biology behind the human proclivity for substance abuse.