The paperback edition of STRUNG OUT is almost here. It publishes on 8.31.21 which is in 8 days!
A photograph of myself is all I have to show for....
“I spent the summer wasting
The time was passed so easily
But if the summer's wasted
How come that I could feel so free?
I spent the summer wasting
The sky was blue beyond compare
A photograph of myself
Is all I have to show for-
Seven weeks of river walkways
Seven weeks of staying up all night”
— Belle and Sebastian
I spent the summer wasting
The time was passed so easily
But if the summer's wasted
How come that I could feel so free?
OMG Pub Date is 11 Days Away
Thank you, Amy Klein, for the pic!
Welp, it’s almost here—Strung Out’s pub day. I am feeling all shades of everything! Here’s a bit of what’s been happening….
This fantastic book review on BookPage, in which the reviewer said: “Erin Khar’s memoir, Strung Out: One Last Hit and Other Lies That Nearly Killed Me, is a compassionate account of her illness and will surely be the gold standard for women writing about heroin addiction.”
Also on BookPage, I was one of eight memoirists answering questions about writing our stories.
An interview I did for Our Town NY, with a focus on resilience and hope.
It was a pleasure doing this interview for Bitch Media. The questions were so thoughtful and I love the way it came out.
Lastly, Strung Out was featured in this New York Times article about the new wave of addiction memoirs.
The Feeling of Holding Finished Hardcover Copies of Strung Out...
This was very emotional.
It was surreal to finally be holding finished hardcover copies of STRUNG OUT! These pictures don’t even do them justice. They’re so pretty and I am so grateful to the whole team at Park Row Books and all the people in my love who have loved and supported me through this entire journey.
Finished hardcover copies of Strung Out!
I did it. I wrote the damn book.
If you’d told me when I was in active addiction that one day I’d be 17 years drug-free, holding copies of a book that I wrote, I never would have believed you. I’m so damn lucky.
Young Erin, it’s all gonna be okay, more than okay.
STRUNG OUT On New Lists From SELF, BitchReads, & Apple Books
Image via AppleBooks
It’s all happening! 2020 has rolled in and with a new batch of book lists featuring STRUNG OUT...
Lastly, it was a pleasure chatting with memoirist Carla Sameth about writing, motherhood, addiction, and trauma for Rare Bird Radio.
Recent Press for STRUNG OUT and Burn It Down
Photo by Rodion Kutsaev on Unsplash
As the year wraps up, there have been some nice mentions of both STRUNG OUT and my essay in the anthology Burn It Down.
I loved Jane Ratcliffe’s conversation (thanks for the shout out!) with Lilly Dancyger about Burn It Down for Guernica.
A nice review of Burn It Down by Lizzie Lawson for The Journal that mentions my essay.
Huge thanks to one of my favorite writers, Rene Denfeld, for including STRUNG OUT in her Year in Reading List for The Millions.
Lastly, I was quoted in Olivia Pennelle’s article for The Fix: Privilege Lurks at the Heart of Recovery Movements.
STRUNG OUT is One of Alma's Favorite Books for Winter 2020
It’s a thrill for me to see STRUNG OUT on Alma’s roundup of their favorite winter 2020 books!
“Erin Khar started using heroin when she was 13 years old. Strung Out tells the story of her 15-year struggle to get clean and fight for her life. Khar, a Jewish writer who contributed an essay to the Burn It Down anthology, does not hold back. Khar explained, “There were very few books about drug addiction written by women, and I didn’t find any of them. I want my book to give people hope and to reduce the stigma around speaking about drug addiction. I wrote Strung Out because it was the book I needed when I was younger.” However, even if you are not someone who has struggled with addiction, Khar’s memoir is not to be missed. It’s a powerful story that points to larger issues in American culture about the opioid crisis and the stigma and shame around drug use. Publisher’s Weekly called it “heartbreaking yet heartwarming” and that is honestly the perfect description.
Read if you’re into: stories of addiction and recovery, memoir. Get it here.”
XOXO
STRUNG OUT on She Reads Most Anticipated Memoir List!
She Reads:The Most Anticipated Memoirs of 2020
AHHHH, my first most anticipated list! I was thrilled to see STRUNG OUT on She Reads’ list of the most anticipated memoirs of 2020!
“Strung Out: One Last Hit and Other Lies That Nearly Killed Me by Erin Khar
This is one that I have been looking forward to for a long time. Khar openly and honestly shares her story about her years-long addiction to heroin. As a young teen, she started using to relieve the pressures of having to be perfect and to mask feelings she didn’t understand. While there is no straight path to recovery, Khar found the strength, self-love and forgiveness to quit when she became a mother. A beautifully honest memoir that shines light on the very real opioid crisis in America today, Khar’s story is a must-read.”
You can see the whole list on She Reads HERE.
Have You Entered The Strung Out Giveaway On Goodreads Yet?
Photo by Nicole Wolf on Unsplash
Want to win an advanced reader copy of STRUNG OUT? Well, head on over to Goodreads and enter. 25 copies are up for grabs! It’s free to enter. I hope you enter and win because I can’t wait to talk with you about the book!
(Only available to US residents.)
ENTER HERE BY DECEMBER 9, 2019
XOXO
STRUNG OUT is Book Trailer of the Day at Shelf Awareness
What a nice surprise this morning to see that Shelf Awareness picked my book trailer as the Book Trailer of the Day!
I’ve always loved watching other authors’ book trailers and it’s surreal to see mine up on YouTube and being shared around social media. It’s a dream come true for me to be able to share my story with the readers and I feel really emotional about it (in a good way!). Hope you’re all having a fantastic week!
XOXO
In this deeply personal and illuminating memoir about her fifteen-year struggle with heroin, Khar sheds profound light on the opioid crisis and gives a voice to the over two million people in America currently battling with this addiction.
New Press & Reviews for Strung Out
Photo by Fabiola Peñalba on Unsplash
Once my advanced readers were out in the world, I realized that STRUNG OUT had become it’s own entity, something I had created that is entirely separate from me. I’ve hoped (and sometimes worried) that my story and the narrative I created from it would resonate with readers and reviewers. While the first Goodreads reviews started appearing shortly after the advanced copies went out, I’d been waiting for my official reviews. The first two are in!
Publishers Weekly was the first official review to come in and they liked it! “Khar holds nothing back in this moving debut memoir about addiction…This heartbreaking yet heartwarming memoir puts a human face on the drug crisis and the factors that lead to addiction.” You can read the whole review HERE.
Next up was Kirkus Reviews. I had heard that Kirkus could be snarky with their reviews. So I felt extra nervous about this one. But what they said was so lovely and all positive. I can breathe again! “Khar is able to describe her behavior with refreshing perspective, and she is candid throughout…This contemporary take on an unfortunately too-common experience is eye-opening and relevant…A necessarily honest and emotional account that ends in earned redemption.” You can read the review in its entirety HERE.
Lastly, I was delighted to be a part of Lisa L. Kirchner’s article for The Fix on how the addiction memoir has evolved. She included this quote from our chat: Khar, for instance, recalls looking for relatable stories. “There were very few books about drug addiction written by women, and I didn’t find any of them.” So she set out to write one. “I want my book to give people hope and to reduce the stigma around speaking about drug addiction,” says Khar. “I wrote Strung Out because it was the book I needed when I was younger.”
More to come!
XOXO