Book Review: "Early Sobrieties" by Michael Deagler

Now I've been eagerly waiting for this book to go on sale and when it did, I made sure that I could snatch it up as soon as physically possible. But that also meant it had to sit around on my Kindle whilst I finished the other books I was reading at the time. I was itchy with anxiety, I wanted to know what everyone thought was so great about it, but also didn't give in to reading many reviews in order to stop myself from ruining the experience of it. I can safely say that this book was thoroughly enjoyed, and that's coming from me - a person who doesn't normally enjoy funny things. Sarcastic and brilliant, this really is a modern classic...

Dennis Monk is a recovering alcoholic at 26 years old. He is also ultimately expelled from his parents' home and so has to navigate his new recovery by himself. He does things such as couch surf and notice these weird indifferences of people towards others - almost unfeeling and going through life perhaps with blinders on. Of course the author has this unique insight into early sobriety which normally includes cutting off old friends and having to establish new relations and that is worked in with precision.

South Philadelphia is more than just a setting for the book but it actually becomes a character in its own right. What we have is this weird juxtaposition between the beliefs of the citizens of the place that aligns with these almost 'hipster' adjacent values. But, as with all these values, they are used ironically to disconnect people from their neighbours and the real world through gentrification. It is almost symbolic for the middle class's hatred for the working class. This community in a flux definitely mirrors the kind of inner-conflict that the main character is going through himself.

Within this sort of fragmented and episodic structure is the way in which the main character behaves with his acquaintances. There is almost this shared sense of disillusionment with the modern world, a shared feeling of disconnection and everyone grapples with uncertainty and unfulfilled ambition. It sort of reminds me of the friendship group we see in one of my favourite novels: Kafka was the Rage by Anatole Broyard. There is just this deep-seated existentialism, a sense of giving up, that underscores the novel and permeates through these characters.

One thing I liked about this book is that it tries not to take itself too seriously. The author writes in quite a dry and quite humorous way which is fairly uncommon in 21st century American Fiction and even more uncommon to have done well. But Deagler makes light work of it and really hammers home the idea that sometimes, it is better to have a snide sense of humour when everything is going to shit. It really takes the phrase: 'at the end of it, all you can do is laugh' to a new meaning.

Of course though, there are darker parts of the book that we simply cannot ignore. Something quite extraordinary is the way his Irish Catholic family treats him because of the stigma surrounding addiction. (I mean a lot of people might question the idea that Irish Catholics would find stigma in alcoholism but there is definitely one, especially when you start emphasising the word 'Catholic'. As someone who went to a Catholic school, they can be very strict. But they are also a very self-disciplined bunch of people and usually very kind).

The aversion to these frank discussions about addiction actually makes the mask of the family dynamics harder to maintain. This is what leads to the whole structure being episodic. As the family dynamics of sound mind are a façade until the main character that gets kicked out of his home, we get to therefore see the truth about sobriety and recovery. The truth is it is never as straightforward as everyone who has not experienced addiction likes to think.

All in all, this book is probably one of the better presentations of modern addiction I have read. You very rarely get the addict's side of the story and in this, we see it in the nonlinear, chaotic and disillusioned world where it is basically one man's fight to stay sober.