Guts: The Endless Follies and Tiny Triumphs of a Giant Disaster
Guts: The Endless Follies and Tiny Triumphs of a Giant Disaster book cover

Guts: The Endless Follies and Tiny Triumphs of a Giant Disaster

Hardcover – Bargain Price, March 13, 2012

by
Price
$34.76
Format
Hardcover
Pages
288
Publisher
Gallery Books
Publication Date
Dimensions
5.5 x 1 x 8.44 inches
Weight
8.8 ounces

Description

From Kirkus reviewsGUTS is immensely likable, and Johnston's rigorous honesty is admirable. Her reminiscences are amusingly candid, fleetly paced & eminently relatable. Vividly and memorably rendered, GUTS grounded in authentic pain,horror & surprising emotional resonance.An honest, brave and funny memoir. GUTS is at once deadly serious and wildly hilarious -- an impossible magic trick at which you are powerless not to stare. - Rob Burnett Executive Producer, The Late Show with David Letterman There's not a dull moment in GUTS. I literally couldn't put it down, and read the whole thing in one sitting. --Amy Sedaris GUTS is utterly brilliant, every page brimming with Kristen's sexy wit. Disarming in its honesty, hysterically funny, pure, real, and so heartbreakingly brutal. --Kate Winslet GUTS is written with a unapologetic ferocity and a generosity of spirit that instantaneously engages your heart. This is a spirited, raw and thrilling book. ― George C. Wolfe, Director and writer! GUTS is the opposite of the usual "celebrity tell-all"-- It's actually a captivating, laugh-out- loud, totally vulnerable and excellently crafted book. --Andy Cohen, VP of programming and host at Bravo Johnston tells her story with fearless, devastating honesty, laser precision humor, and a refreshing lack of self-pity. This book should be required reading for anyone who is an addict, or simply cares about one. Which means everyone on the planet. --Joe Schrank, National Youth Recovery Foundation & co-creator of TheFix.com Kristen Johnston is a two-time Emmy Award-winning stage, film, and television actress (namely '3rd Rock from the Sun' & 'The Exes'), an acting teacher at NYU, and now of course, an enormously celebrated author. xa0She co-founded SLAM (Sobriety, Learning And Motivation), a board dedicated to the creation of NYC's first sober high school. She lives in NYC with her pit bull, Pinky. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Guts one I SEE NOTHING, I HEAR NOTHING Read more

Features & Highlights

  • “It felt like I was speeding on the Autobahn toward hell, trapped inside a DeLorean with no brakes. And even if I
  • could
  • somehow stop, I’d still be screwed, because there’s no way I’d ever be able to figure out how to open those insane, cocaine-designed doors.”
  • The two-time Emmy Award-winning actress has written her first book, a surprisingly raw and triumphant memoir that is outrageous, moving, sweet, tragic, and heartbreakingly honest.
  • GUTS
  • is a true triumph—a memoir that manages to be as frank and revealing as Augusten Burroughs, yet as hilarious and witty as David Sedaris. With
  • GUTS
  • , Johnston takes us on a journey so truthful and relatable, so remarkably fresh, it promises to stay with the reader for a long, long time.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(815)
★★★★
25%
(340)
★★★
15%
(204)
★★
7%
(95)
★
-7%
(-95)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Quick Read

I just loved Kristen Johnston on 3rd Rock From the Sun & thought she was just wonderful. Being a short person coming from a family with a lot of tall family members, I never realized she'd had issues growing up of being tall. I know what issues my youngest sister has finding clothes (she's 6'1"), but didn't realize Kristen's life. So sad that no one could validate her & let her know that height was something she could be proud of, even at the younger age. 2 boy cousins also were extremely tall when young, but they were revered for basketball teams.... Having been big on top, I was made fun of in a different way, so I could immediately identify with her about the taunting, the self-esteem issues, etc. As someone who loves her as an actress, I'm glad she made it & I'm glad she's back on TV. I was so excited to see her in another sitcom. The book was a quick read as it's written in a way I could sit down & keep reading for long periods at a time (I normally can't sit still long enough to read a book anymore). I went through shock when I realized how close she'd come to death and her emotional & health issues and was glad she wrote this book.
1 people found this helpful
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An excellent read!

The truth is funny, sad, exhausting, and blessed. This book is all those things rolled into a solid read. How brave she is to tell the truth and find a sense of resolve that helps the continual struggle of addiction.
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Gotta say

Kristen Johnston has guts for sure. Ordered book because i say an excellent movie titled The Anonymous People. It was made to bring awareness to recovering addicts, the stigma attached and that these people may be not just recovering but doing well along the journey.
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Raw and Real

Amazing story about the real life of someone in recovery. Wit and humor, along with a realistic view of the kind of struggle addicts go through in recovery made this book a must read for me.
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Raw, honest, relatable and very funny

I read this book in one day, a work day at that. I enjoyed Kristen's humor, sarcasm, take on people around her, her school years, how she chose to "escape", and addictions. I thought she brilliantly explained how an addict's brain reacts differently to painkillers: " Most people are glad to be relieved of their pain, but they mostly just experienced itchy skin, constipation, and nausea and most were happy and relieved to stop taking the pills. Now, the reaction of the drug addict's brain is just slightly different: It goes a little something like Yes! Yes! Thank you!!!! This is what I've been waiting for all these years. I finally feel normal, I finally feel happy! MORE MORE MOREMOREMOREMORE!"
Kristen writes about the horror of nearly dying and the long recovery from ruptured intestines. Later, a friend's matter-of-fact advicefinally prompted Ms Johnston to do go to rehab, and she's been clean and sober since. Rehab and meetings are a little more tricky and uncomfortable when you're famous, but when she finally grudgingly got up for her turn to share, she realized that not only was it cathartic for her, it opened the gate for everyone else to get up and share their experiences. When someone later suggested she keep her sobriety to herself, she decided to do the opposite and share her story in hopes of lifting the shame and secrecy that is just as deadly as the disease itself. There was gossip about her weight loss being due to anorexia, but she hadn't publically told the whole story yet.
This isn't a Hollywood tell-all, but a very interesting, funny, relatable, honest, raw and real book. I didn't want to put it down!
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Helping my Daughter

I bought Kristen Johnston's "GUTS" To Help my daughter with her struggle with drugs. She hasn't always made the best decisions for herself. I Just want my daughter back and bought this for her to read. She Loved it and has been a better person since reading it. She Keeps it out in view for her reminder everyday as her inspiration to continue her improvement .

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