Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
At the start of this terrific debut, former drug dealer Vorobyov writes of the London prison where he served time in 2013--2014 for possession with intent to supply, "With its uninspired menu, rude staff, slow room service and guests unable to leave their rooms twenty-three hours a day, suffice it to say that this place wouldn't get a good rating on TripAdvisor." That same wit marks his account of his misspent youth in England as the son of Russian émigrés, and his post-prison travels around the world meeting with those involved in the illegal drug trade and those trying to combat it. Along the way, Vorobyov provides much fascinating history, from the ancient Incas' use of coca to late-20th-century America's war on drugs, which he argues originated largely as a way to criminalize black Americans following the civil rights movement. He ends on a hopeful note, citing the socialist government of Portugal's decision in 2001 to decriminalize all drugs, which led to a drastic drop in the number of addicts, overdoses, and new HIV cases. Vorobyov makes a persuasive case for the legalization of drugs in what he aptly calls "a true crime, gonzo, social, historical-memoir meets fucked-up travel book." It could well become a classic. Agents: John Ash and Patrick Walsh, PEW Literary (U.K.). (Aug.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Journalist Vorobyov (Russia Today) traveled the globe to explore the drug trade, raising intriguing questions along the way. "How come a gram of coke can land you in handcuffs, but you can buy beer and cigs at any corner shop? Why are so many kids dying, and why are our prisons filling up?" Vorobyov, who served two and a half years in prison for possession with intent to supply, bounces between personal stories and visits to a dozen countries. This fast-paced, in-your-face, sprawling book is bolstered by snippets of the history of Prohibition, the Sicilian Mafia, Mexican drug cartels, and American drug dealers. The author makes brief stops in the Philippines, Iran, Russia, Mexico, Colombia, Italy, and Los Angeles to interview mid-level or retired drug trade players. A highlight is his meeting with former drug lord "Freeway" Rick Ross, who explains how he profited from crack cocaine sales. Given the author's background, there are few references to law enforcement or drug abuse prevention and rehabilitation. Readers seeking a more focused take will prefer Ben Westhoff's Fentanyl, Inc., or Evan Ratliff's The Mastermind. VERDICT Equal parts criminal memoir, history lesson, and travelog, this will appeal to readers seeking an immersive and intimate look at the drug trade.--Harry Charles, St. Louis
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
An entertaining excursion into the narcotics trade by a one-time practitioner. Born in the former Soviet Union, Vorobyov landed as a child in "a small boring town in the British countryside that doubles as a film set whenever the BBC want to do a costume drama." Bored out of his skull, he dabbled in various penny-ante criminal enterprises such as selling pirated DVDs "until everyone discovered the Internet," which led him to his next gig: selling cocaine and other drugs to his fellow college students, who proved a willing, lucrative market. "Drugs are an easy, low-risk source of tax-free profit," he writes. "You can scream how it's wrong all you want, but name another business where you can quadruple your investment over a weekend." The drug trade in Britain came under the control of various ethnic groups, most notably--and violently--Albanian gangsters. As for the author, he got caught and did a little time but remains defiant in his defense of the enterprise: "I hate it when people say drug dealers don't work for a living," he writes. "Your baggies don't just weigh themselves and fly over to your people's houses." Still, weighing the odds and considering how people behind bars turn into their own worst enemies and have a terrible habit of killing themselves, Vorobyov decided to try a different tack: "While I was in jail, I'd figured that I might as well become one of those prison intellectual types: the subversive scholar." That scholarship meant reading, traveling the globe ("call me Narco Polo"), and chronicling such diverse matters as a drug's effects on the brain's dopamine levels, the trade's contribution to the international economy, and a "war on drugs" that is really a genocide of ethnic minorities in slow motion. His conclusion: One day, that war will end, whereupon he'll open a cannabis shop named for the judge who sentenced him. A revealing treatise that provides ample ammunition for the legalize-it crowd. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
