Product Description
As an atheist with a background in fundamentalism, Bucky Sinister was skeptical of 12-step groups when the time came for him to get sober. He was afraid of losing his artistic abilities and had big problems with the higher power concept. In spite of his hesitations, he stuck with the program and it rewarded him greatly. In Get Up, he shares the knowledge he gained on his journey, from being afraid of the 12-step philosophies to embracing them, motivating others to join him in their own efforts to get clean.
Sinister, a spoken word artist, poet, and performer, well-known on the West Coast for his grabbing, truthful, funny performances, puts out his own story, no frills, no excuses, and no holds barred. He offers a tough-love approach to recovery for all those, like him, who are turned off by traditional recovery books.
Sinister got sober using the 12-step program, has stayed sober, and now he leads the very group he joined on his path to recovery. In Get Up, he shares the stories and the steps that come from the self-identified scum bags who just might save your life. He talks straight to readers about how to make it work if they can’t buy into the program right away. For example, Higher Power can be a whole lot of things-Thor and metaphor among them. He helps readers to accept the group in spite of their differences, rather than walking away.
Get Up: A 12-step Guide to Recovery for Misfits, Freaks, and Weirdos
My name is Barbara and I’m a Normie. I’ve spent my whole life surrounded by addicts of diverse flavors but I never got hooked on substances — work and shopping, that’s another story. Somewhere along the line I picked up a basic drug and alcohol counseling certificate because I was doing so much of it around the kitchen table. And, various shrinks have sent me to lots of different 12 Step meetings over the years but they didn’t take. That said…
If you have ANY bad habits, addictions, compulsions, whatever that you don’t like and want to get rid of READ THIS BOOK!!
Especially read it if you are a loner, a non-joiner, a biker, a gangsta, an artist, a punk, a tatoo “installer”, diagnosed with Asberger’s, or enjoy any other condition that makes you feel “different”, “special”, or not fitting in. Bucky absolutely NAILS that condition and with wild hilarity, can totally motivate you to seek help in getting rid of whatever you want to get rid of.
If you’re a Tom Waits fan, READ THIS book. Likewise, if you empathize with Nik Colyer’s Biker Bob books and their new take on self-help, READ THIS book!
Get Up is the self help book for people who dislike self, help, and self help groups. It’s wonderful, even if you’re a weird Normie with a zany sense of humor. Thanks, Bucky.
Rating: 5 / 5
I’ve been in 12 step programs for ever, staying sober, but still have struggles with the God thing and don’t say anything to others. Now I will. Thank you
Rating: 5 / 5
I’ve been sober for 19 years as of this writing, but I would not classify myself as a misfit, freak or weirdo. Well, maybe a little. I’m not an artist by trade. I play a little music and do some writing, but I’ve got a straight job in an office, and a wife and kids at home in a development house in the suburbs on a tree-lined street. Though I am certainly a skeptic when it comes to religious/spiritual ideas, by all outward appearances I’ve got more in common with Ward Cleaver (or maybe Ned Flanders) than I do with Bucky Sinister.
In any case, I’ve read a fair number of recovery and self-help related materials. Without a doubt, this is the single most helpful, direct, honest and practical one of the bunch. I’ve had the book for about eight weeks, and I’ve read it cover to cover three times now. The second time through, I started marking it up with highlighters, writing in the margins and sticking post it notes to certain pages. The third time through, I started writing in my own notebook.
I gave up going to 12 step meetings more than 10 years ago, mostly because I was exhausted with the disrespect given to those with atheist, agnostic or, in many cases, anything other than Christian beliefs. I thought I had learned enough that I could keep working a program without going to meetings. After reading this book, though, I realized that I had fallen away from that.
I have several goals in life that I have been kicking around for a long time, but on which I have not made any progress. These things are important to me, but I continue to go through the motions of my life without addressing them.
This book has inspired me to begin to work my program with a new vigor. Maybe going to some meetings will help to keep me focused on my program. Bucky’s advice for non-Christian survival in the rooms makes the possibility of meetings a lot more palatable than the condescending “We Agnostics” chapter of the Big Book. I’ve got more balls now than I did back then, and I’m willing to try. And it’s high time I go through the steps again with a practical purpose in mind and not just go through the motions of them because a sponsor said to. Bucky’s breakdown of the steps, by the way, is excellent.
Yes, there’s a bit of filler in the book (“Your Inner A-Team,” “The Hero’s Journey” and “My Life in the Art Scene,” for example, though I loved “Achieving Your Goals the Lee Marvin Way”), and sometimes Bucky’s desire to show how hipper than thou he is becomes nearly cringe-worthy, and calling people who aren’t alcoholics “normies” is cringe-worthy, but I can forgive those things when the rest of the material and the overall message is this powerful.
In conclusion, if you’ve got any excuse for not fitting in in recovery, whether you’re a not yet completely dried loner out or you’re a crotchety old timer who’s angry that you can’t smoke at your home group anymore, I suggest that you get a copy of this book and give some of the ideas in it a chance.
Thank you, Bucky. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Rating: 5 / 5
Bucky Sinister speaks sense to that portion of addicts of whom so many others cannot even begin to approach. He is straight forward, honest, and non-preachy. But he is SOBER! This book does no disservice to the AA program, he goes through it all without telling anyone else how to make it work for them, but he knows how to say it without becoming disingenuous. I recommend anyone, alcoholic or not, to read this book. It is for freaks, misfits and weirdos as well as those who love them. Thank you Bucky Sinister!
Rating: 5 / 5
The book is short, direct and gets to the point.
The message is sound. If you’re not happy, and chemicals are a big part of your life, you need to deal with your chemical problem.
He gives some signs that you’re an addict that i’ve never heard before.
He sounds positive, and he believes in the message he’s delivering.
And for him, that’s important. Because he hates hypocrites.
His self-analysis about how he was screwed by a couple all-engrossing religious groups really hit me.
Rating: 4 / 5