{"product_id":"9781472282569-hooked","title":"Hooked","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAddiction and the Long Road to Recovery\u003cbr\u003ePaul Merson's wonderfully moving and brutally honest memoir of battling addiction for three decades.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eShortlisted for the 2022 Sports Book Awards\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'brave . visceral . a brilliant, brilliant read . I would recommend this book to everyone.' Nihal Arthanayake, BBC Radio 5 Live\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'so honest . everybody should read \u003ci\u003eHooked \u003c\/i\u003eto understand what anybody in this situation has been through.' Susanna Reid, \u003ci\u003eGood Morning Britain\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'a fantastic book . a remarkable read.' Richard Madeley, \u003ci\u003eGood Morning Britain\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Brave, poignant and very moving. This book will change lives.' Jamie Redknapp\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A courageous, emotional and vitally important book.' Jeff Stelling\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePaul Merson's wonderfully moving and brutally honest memoir of battling addiction for three decades.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor twenty-one years Paul Merson played professional football. He won two First Division titles with Arsenal and was one of the finest players of his generation. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut for thirty years Paul Merson has also been an addict. Alcohol, drugs, gambling: a desperately unenviable cocktail of addictions and depression which has plagued his entire adult life and driven him to the verge of suicide. 'I've come to realise that I'm powerless over alcohol . I'm an alcoholic. My drinking and gambling have left a lot of wreckage.'  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUntil recently the drinking and gambling were still raging. 'I wanted to kill myself. I couldn't go on anymore. I just couldn't see a way out.' Then something clicked. 'One day, I was walking home from the pub late on a Sunday evening, and I thought to myself: \u003ci\u003eI've had enough of feeling like this, every day of my life\u003c\/i\u003e. I rang up Alcoholics Anonymous the next day, and since then I haven't had a drink.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eHooked \u003c\/i\u003eis Merson's wonderfully moving and brutally honest memoir of battling addiction, searingly charting his  journey over three decades. It is absolutely unflinching in detailing his emotional and psychological troughs and in raking over the painful embers of an adult life blighted by such debilitating issues. \u003ci\u003eHooked \u003c\/i\u003ewill kick-start a crucial national conversation about addiction, depression and the damage they wreak. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Addiction is the loneliest of places. You're a slave to insecurity and ego. But it has to be \u003ci\u003eyou\u003c\/i\u003e that wants things to change. Never be afraid to talk: the more you talk about the addictions the more it takes the power out of them. You're never alone.'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40943998533729,"sku":"9781472282569","price":10.95,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_38958288.jpg?v=1765399499","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781472282569-hooked","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}