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A repost of my review of Drink Smoke Pass Out by the brilliant Judith Lucy.  Saw her show with Denise Scott this weekend at the Enmore.  Cracking night.  Funny Ladies.

 

 

I first saw Judith Lucy on an episode of Rove a few years ago where she was revealing a story about being so drunk on red wine her teeth were blue but yet she still thought that in her grubby dressing gown, drunk out of her mind it was the perfect time to try and seduce the pizza delivery boy.  I thought, ‘I can relate to his woman’.

So, when there became an opportunity to review this book through Netgalley I took it.  ‘Drink, Smoke, Pass Out’ is Eat Pray Love through the looking glass.  It’s not full of serendipitous meetings with European hunks and exploring quaint restaurants and finding oneself in a year.  It’s a lifetime of searching, of fitting in, of sleeping with the wrong men (and sometimes the right ones) dealing with nutbag parents, bombshells that would send anyone over the edge and all the while trying to find a little bit of stillness, a little bit of that ‘something missing’. More often than not in the bottom of a wine glass or a hit from a bong.

The central people in Judith’s life pop up throughout the chapters, her parents feature heavily, I wish they were still alive because that’s a money in the bank reality TV series, her friends, her lovers and her mentors.  They appear forward and back in time depending of on the part of the journey, but the common thread of the book inches forward little by little, page by page as Judith searches for her own spiritual path and love of Yoga.  It ties in nicely with the ABC TV series Judith Lucy’s Spiritual Journey towards the last quarter without cashing in or flogging every drop from it.

There are parts I relate to and the anecdotes of crazy drunk situations made me think back to my own, I’m amazed she has the bravery to be so brutally honest and  although I loved all of the book I didn’t agree with some of her points.  Some thoughts on religion and various books I disagreed with, and sometimes she seems a little hard on her parents, but that’s ok. Judith isn’t preaching to you, she is sharing her perspective, her reality (or sometimes just some slightly aggressive vents) as you see her try to figure it all out on the pages.  What I like is that it isn’t all tied up nicely with a happy a ending, but there is a contentment, a happiness and a positivity about Judith which makes me think that I might just be ok too.

After reading this book I would like nothing more than to meet Judith for a drink and chat about her journey further, as I’m sure there are stories that can never be put into print! Although I have a feeling we would both end up at the crows nest hotel doing tequila shots at 2am in the morning with a bunch of students.