The Book
● TABLE OF CONTENTS

This book will benefit people of all ages in all places. No benefit comes from telling kids that drugs are bad. That statement often encourages further questions and simple forms of rebellion. It also provides no guidance for the typical person who is likely to try something that neither their parents nor their teachers taught them how to try. Through “How To Have Fun and Not Die” the writer relates to his peers with honesty and without judgment.

Accidental Overdose
The core of the book's focus is the accidental overdose caused by particular combinations of legal and illegal substances. The chapter called “drug combinations” is in the form of a list. Not only does it serve as an invaluable reference guide that can save a person’s life by changing what was a seemingly insignificant decision they were going to make that evening, but it also sets the underlying theme that the slightest difference in a situation can be the difference between living and dying. Whether it is the cutting agent that is mixed with cocaine, the chemical make up of a person, the surrounding environment of a person on an acid trip, or what over-the-counter headache medicine one takes after a night of drinking and pill popping. The simplest, most general goal of this book is to make people think about what they are doing, before they do it.

How to do Drugs
If this book had a more conservative title, it would be called “How To Survive Adolescence.” While it intelligently branches out a bit from its origin, all the issues covered are in some way related to drug experimentation. Possibly the most interesting chapter and one of my favorites is called “How to do drugs,” which was originally titled “Impacts of Different Ways of Doing Drugs.” It gives a detailed discussion on how different routes of administration can cause the same drug to have severely different effects. Not one kid I’ve spoken to has even a vague conception of the technical difference between swallowing his prescription medication as opposed to chopping it up and snorting it. On the seemingly less serious, more entertaining side, there is the chapter called “celebrity overdoses,” which is a list of recognizable names and how each individual met his or her demise. Some intentional, some unintentional, all are great examples that when grouped together draw a clear picture of some of the easiest, accidental ways to end your life. A common one is passing out and then choking on your vomit, which serves as a smooth transition to the chapter called “Pulling the Trigger.” This chapter discusses the importance of being able to make yourself vomit if you are too drunk. And consistent with many passages in the book, you are told a thorough, entertaining story which also provides instructions on how to efficiently perform the task at hand.