Drink: The Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol

Overthepastfewdecades,thefeministrevolutionhashadenormousramifications.Womenoutnumbertheirmalecounterpartsinpostsecondaryeducationinmostofthedevelopedworld,andtheyareabouttodothesameintheworkplace.Butwhathasnotbeenfullydocumentedorexploredisthatwhilewomenhavegainedequalityinmanyarenas,theyalsohavebeguntoclosethegendergapintermsofalcoholabuse.IntheUnitedStatesalone,morethantwenty-threethousandwomendiefromheavydrinkingeachyear.Bingedrinkingandso-calleddrunkorexiaareontherise,contributingexponentiallytoanarrayofhealthconditionsandcancers.Combiningin-depthresearchwithherownpersonalstoryofrecovery,AnnDowsettJohnstondeliversagroundbreakingexaminationofashockingyetlittle-recognizedepidemicthreateningsocietytoday,whatpreeminentresearcherSharonWilsnackbelievesisa"globalepidemic"ofwomen'sdrinking.DowsettJohnston'sauthoritycomesfromaplaceofexperience.Eightyearsagoshewasanaward-winningseniorjournalistwithCanada'smajornewsweeklymagazineMaclean'sandpopularonthespeakingcircuit.SheseemedtohaveitallwhenshewasnamedviceprincipalofMcGillUniversity.Inprivate,thehigh-functioningprofessionalknewshewaswrestlingwithademonthathadundoneherownmother：alcoholaddiction.DowsettJohnstontookaveryprivateexitfromherprofessionallifeandwenttorehab.Shereenteredprofessionallifein2010,winningtheprestigiousAtkinsonFellowshipinPublicPolicy,chargedwithexaminingtheclosinggendergapintheworldofriskydrinking.Sobernowforfiveyears,sheretellsherstruggleswithbrutalhonesty,affordingusanunprecedentedlookatwomenanddrinkingthatisbothmovingandenlightening.DowsettJohnstondissectsthepsychological,social,andworkplacefactorsthathavecontributedtothiscrisis,exploringtheirfar-reachingimpactonsocietyatlargeandindividuallives,includingherown.Comprehensiveandemotionallyriveting,Drinkissuretobecomeamodernclassiconthetopicofwomenanddrinking,muchasAndrewSolomon'sTheNoondayDemonwasfordepression.Drinkisabraveandpowerfulstorybeautifullytoldandanimportantinvestigationintoanepidemicthatwecannolongeraffordtoignore.