Finding Connection Through Addiction: Chasing the Scream

I am incredibly indecisive; my friends would tell you this is my biggest flaw. Naturally, I struggled to pick a favorite work of non-fiction; however, the last (non-fiction) book I read was Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari.

Last semester I was asked to read Chasing the Scream for my Drugs and Society course and once I started this book it was extremely difficult to put down. This book dives into the history and the current state of the war on drugs and how it has changed throughout the years. Journalist and author, Johann Hari starts the book by clarifying that he himself struggled with addiction, along with many of his close family members and friends. His own experience with addiction brought him on a long investigative journey that is shared through Chasing the Scream. As a journalism major, this book read as a long investigative report into the war on drugs which immediately drew me in. When I started this book, I believed I was extremely educated on the war on drugs, but I was quickly surprised by how wrong I was about everything surrounding this topic. Hari’s journalistic instincts shine through the many people he interviewed, and the dozens of stories shared. This book shares how addiction effects people in many ways and how the war on drugs was created to alienate those struggling with addiction from society. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of addiction, but Hari is not shy when pointing out how each chapter or aspect connects.

The biggest point Hari drives home in his book is, “The opposite of addiction is connection.” This point has stuck with me because as humans it is in our nature to find a quick fix to any problem in our lives, or society; however, this solution more often than not is simply being there for one another. The power human connection holds is incredible.