On Addiction

“Beautifully written and impressive in its range and scope. A profound meditation on our understandings of the meaning, nature, and experience of addiction; dazzling in its intellectual scope and quietly radical in its implications for practice.” - Gerda Reith, author of Addictive Consumption: Capitalism, Modernity and Excess

“Darin Weinberg’s work truly shines in its capacity to cast analytic attention on the micromechanics of human behavior at the level of language, phenomenology, and interaction and on the larger social structures that shape the situations in which these occur. Weinberg delves more deeply into the fundamental nature of addiction than anyone else I’ve read and reaches a set of conclusions that will thoroughly destabilize the foundational assumptions in the field. On Addiction is a provocative, pathbreaking, erudite, brilliantly argued, and beautifully written book.” - Craig Reinarman, Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Legal Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz

"Weinberg . . . convincingly shows that neither the natural nor social sciences have been able to explain the role of choice in addiction. . . . In the most compelling chapter of the book, which details Weinberg’s fieldwork in Los Angeles treatment programs, he theorizes an "ecology of addiction.'" - Maria Cichosz, Los Angeles Review of Books

"On Addiction employs history, ethnography, and critical theory to enhance readers' understanding of addiction. . . .  Readers wishing to explore the social, scientific and theoretical underpinnings behind the free will versus determinism controversy regarding addictions will find much satisfaction in this work." - W. Feigelman, Choice

"[Weinberg] does an excellent job of exploring the complexities and nuances inherent in substance use, abuse, and addiction. . . . This book is a fascinating and thought-provoking read; I commend it to your attention." - Mark K. Huntington, Family Medicine