📖 Overview
Crash and Burn chronicles comedian Artie Lange's harrowing journey through addiction, mental illness, and self-destruction. The memoir details his experiences between 2009 and 2013, a period marked by multiple stays in psychiatric facilities and rehabilitation centers.
The book takes readers behind the scenes of Lange's life after his departure from The Howard Stern Show, documenting his struggles to maintain his career while battling severe drug dependency. Lange provides an unfiltered account of his experiences, including the physical and emotional toll of addiction on both himself and those around him.
The narrative tracks his path from successful comedian and radio personality to someone fighting for survival, all while dealing with mental health challenges and repeated attempts at recovery. The memoir includes accounts of his time in various institutions and his efforts to rebuild his life.
This raw memoir serves as both a cautionary tale about the destructive power of addiction and a testament to human resilience. The work stands as an honest exploration of how success and self-sabotage can coexist, while offering insights into the complex nature of recovery.
👀 Reviews
Readers describe this as a raw, unflinching look at Lange's battles with drug addiction and self-destruction. Many fans of his radio work appreciate the brutal honesty about his suicide attempt and subsequent recovery.
Readers liked:
- The detailed behind-the-scenes stories from MADtv and Howard Stern
- The conversational writing style that matches Lange's voice
- The lack of self-pity or excuses for his behavior
Readers disliked:
- Repetitive stories that were covered in his first book
- Some passages that seem embellished or exaggerated
- The non-chronological timeline that can be hard to follow
Ratings:
Goodreads: 3.8/5 (2,900+ ratings)
Amazon: 4.4/5 (850+ ratings)
Common reader comment: "It's like having a long conversation with Artie"
Several reviewers noted the book serves as a cautionary tale, with one Amazon reviewer writing: "Shows the true horror of addiction without trying to glamorize it."
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🤔 Interesting facts
🎭 Artie Lange gained widespread fame as a long-time sidekick on "The Howard Stern Show" from 2001 to 2009, making him one of radio's most recognizable voices.
💊 The book reveals Lange attempted suicide in 2010 by drinking bleach and stabbing himself nine times with a kitchen knife, an incident that became a turning point in his life.
🎬 Despite his struggles, Lange maintained an active career during this period, appearing in various films and TV shows, including his own series "The Artie Lange Show."
📚 "Crash and Burn" is Lange's second memoir, following his 2008 bestseller "Too Fat to Fish," which debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Seller list.
🏥 The memoir details 13 different rehabilitation attempts throughout Lange's life, providing unprecedented insight into the challenges of long-term addiction recovery.