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Wasted: A Childhood Stolen, An Innocence Betrayed, A Life Redeemed
As a young child, Mark Johnson and his siblings would turn up to school battered and bruised by their alcoholic father, but no one ever investigated their home life. Mark just slipped through the cracks and kept on falling for years. He was stealing at the age of six, was drinking by the age of eight, and took his first hit of heroin when he was just eleven. A sensitive and intelligent boy, art college beckoned, but he ended up in prison instead. With searing honesty, Wasted documents Mark’s descent into the very depths of addiction and criminality. Hooked on heroin and crack, homeless on the streets of London with a price on his head, no one—least of all Mark—believed he would ever survive, never mind recover. And yet he somehow found the strength to pull through, and now runs his own thriving tree surgery business, employing and helping other recovering addicts. A shocking and inspirational story.
320 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
February 23, 2025
3.5⭐
Tema aktuali, ypač šiandieniniame pasaulyje tarp paauglių.
Tačiau pats pasakojimo išdėstymas buvo vietomis skurdokas,nekeliantis didelio susidomėjimo ir kelis kartus norėjosi knygą mesti į šalį.
Antra knygos dalis buvo jau įdomiau. Ženkliai. Tačiau pats bendras įspūdis visvien liko tik kiek geriau nei vidutinis. 🤷
Tema aktuali, ypač šiandieniniame pasaulyje tarp paauglių.
Tačiau pats pasakojimo išdėstymas buvo vietomis skurdokas,nekeliantis didelio susidomėjimo ir kelis kartus norėjosi knygą mesti į šalį.
Antra knygos dalis buvo jau įdomiau. Ženkliai. Tačiau pats bendras įspūdis visvien liko tik kiek geriau nei vidutinis. 🤷
September 1, 2018
I flew through this book in record time. An amazing and quite a depressing story of how someone can truly hit rock bottom and then somehow manage to turn their life around.
October 13, 2022
The best thing about books is that, no matter how affecting they are, you don't love inside them. They just love in you. As such, you are in charge of how they make you feel.
There are many descriptions of sad, cruel and disappointing circumstances in this book. Personally, I'm glad I didn't live a life like this. I'm glad I read this book so that I can be glad that I want in it.
This is a story of hope and redemption. The author comes good in the end. All. Oils should have happy endings. I'm glad this one does.
Be glad you are you. Unless, of course, you're having a bad time of it. In which case, I hope you find your happy path. Your proper happy path.
Read this book if you can't get hold of yourself. It might just help. Avoid it if you're okay. No sense in rocking the boat.
There are many descriptions of sad, cruel and disappointing circumstances in this book. Personally, I'm glad I didn't live a life like this. I'm glad I read this book so that I can be glad that I want in it.
This is a story of hope and redemption. The author comes good in the end. All. Oils should have happy endings. I'm glad this one does.
Be glad you are you. Unless, of course, you're having a bad time of it. In which case, I hope you find your happy path. Your proper happy path.
Read this book if you can't get hold of yourself. It might just help. Avoid it if you're okay. No sense in rocking the boat.
August 12, 2023
Trzeba przyznać, że trochę się rozwijała, ale potem już bardzo łatwo się czytało. Dosyć drastyczne opisy związane z życiem na ulicy i przyjmowaniem narkotyków, ale bardzo mi się podoba jak to jest napisane.
July 18, 2021
Brutally Honest!
This book about heroin addiction, prison and homelessness is brutally honest. Mark Johnson was homeless with a £300 a day addiction, but he could make £400 a day on the streets. The book, in its vicious and ferocious way kept me spellbound, and I couldn’t put it down. He was sent to prison for crimes he couldn’t even remember, and on the streets, where he describes the whole street community in terms I hadn’t previously imagined, he lived on three or four Snickers bars a week plus a few warm cans of Special Brew.
SPOILER ALERTS
Johnson just fell between the cracks. The reader thinks he’s reached rock bottom when he (spoiler alert here) wakes up with a needle in his arm and his young son wandering around with a full nappy. But in comparison of what was to come, that wasn’t too bad. Johnson was primed for a tough life by his father who regularly beat his mother and punched Johnson himself, even going so far as to push the young boy’s face into the fire.
SPOILER ALERTS
There are various rock bottoms in the book; The rock bottom of sending his prostitute girlfriend out to find men so he could get more crack, the rock bottom of banging up in the back of the car and throwing sweets to his son in the front to keep him quiet, the rock bottom of realising that even drugs that would kill most people don’t work for him anymore, the rock bottom of indirectly killing a Japanese lady just to get more gear, the rock bottom of realising murderous twins have been paid to kill him.
I entitled this review ‘Brutally Honest’ because of Johnson candour. He asks nothing of the reader, certainly not sympathy or empathy. He doesn’t pretend to be a nice person. His writing has a simplicity to it that draws you in. And yet, for me, all of the above – life patterns which would tip most of us over the edge - isn’t his rock bottom. For me, his rock bottom is (spoiler alert here) having his socks surgically removed, an operation which takes hours, causing the young nurse to retch several times.
Throughout the book Johnson is occasionally met with random acts of kindness, tenderness and support, even though he doesn’t deserve it. He is, however, a human being and for that alone he deserves a second chance.
This book won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it deserves 5 Stars, not just for the book itself, but for his integrity and the manner in which he finally approaches the Sisyphean Labour of turning his life around
This book about heroin addiction, prison and homelessness is brutally honest. Mark Johnson was homeless with a £300 a day addiction, but he could make £400 a day on the streets. The book, in its vicious and ferocious way kept me spellbound, and I couldn’t put it down. He was sent to prison for crimes he couldn’t even remember, and on the streets, where he describes the whole street community in terms I hadn’t previously imagined, he lived on three or four Snickers bars a week plus a few warm cans of Special Brew.
SPOILER ALERTS
Johnson just fell between the cracks. The reader thinks he’s reached rock bottom when he (spoiler alert here) wakes up with a needle in his arm and his young son wandering around with a full nappy. But in comparison of what was to come, that wasn’t too bad. Johnson was primed for a tough life by his father who regularly beat his mother and punched Johnson himself, even going so far as to push the young boy’s face into the fire.
SPOILER ALERTS
There are various rock bottoms in the book; The rock bottom of sending his prostitute girlfriend out to find men so he could get more crack, the rock bottom of banging up in the back of the car and throwing sweets to his son in the front to keep him quiet, the rock bottom of realising that even drugs that would kill most people don’t work for him anymore, the rock bottom of indirectly killing a Japanese lady just to get more gear, the rock bottom of realising murderous twins have been paid to kill him.
I entitled this review ‘Brutally Honest’ because of Johnson candour. He asks nothing of the reader, certainly not sympathy or empathy. He doesn’t pretend to be a nice person. His writing has a simplicity to it that draws you in. And yet, for me, all of the above – life patterns which would tip most of us over the edge - isn’t his rock bottom. For me, his rock bottom is (spoiler alert here) having his socks surgically removed, an operation which takes hours, causing the young nurse to retch several times.
Throughout the book Johnson is occasionally met with random acts of kindness, tenderness and support, even though he doesn’t deserve it. He is, however, a human being and for that alone he deserves a second chance.
This book won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it deserves 5 Stars, not just for the book itself, but for his integrity and the manner in which he finally approaches the Sisyphean Labour of turning his life around
March 16, 2014
Content would have been 4, but writing style was a 1-2
January 19, 2015
Wow this book was amazing , so powerfully written . It was like being on a emotional roller coaster 5 stars all the way
September 20, 2020
WOW. What an unbelievably powerful and astonishing memoir this is. ‘Wasted’ is the story of Mark Johnson and his spiralling descent into drug addiction. There are no holds barred here, it’s an unflinchingly honest account of how a young kid grew up with a violent dad and eventually found himself on the street as a heroin and crack addict. Exceptionally well written, I found myself turning the pages in horror and disbelief reading how he gradually descended further into hell, throwing away chance after chance of a normal life.
This is the perfect example of how drugs can suck you in; one day you’re handling your habit, the next it’s out of control and you’re spending a couple of hundred quid a day just to get your fix and you don’t think about anything else. It’s a terrifying read to be honest, but also deeply compelling. I really liked Mark - I was desperate for him to get clean but I wasn’t sure he could manage it - the skill of the writing in this book made me realise just how powerful addiction really is, it was so eye opening.
An incredible book, which has really made me think about the way I perceive addicts and homeless people. Unbelievably enlightening and a book both fascinating and terrifying in equal measure.
This is the perfect example of how drugs can suck you in; one day you’re handling your habit, the next it’s out of control and you’re spending a couple of hundred quid a day just to get your fix and you don’t think about anything else. It’s a terrifying read to be honest, but also deeply compelling. I really liked Mark - I was desperate for him to get clean but I wasn’t sure he could manage it - the skill of the writing in this book made me realise just how powerful addiction really is, it was so eye opening.
An incredible book, which has really made me think about the way I perceive addicts and homeless people. Unbelievably enlightening and a book both fascinating and terrifying in equal measure.
April 11, 2023
Wow. What a read. I read this as I have an interest in the reasons why/when and how people become addicted to hard drugs. This was eye-opening for me. It's a very true and honestly quite brutal story of how a drug addict thinks/lives and the consequences of such a terrible addiction. It is very real and gritty. There were lots of times when I couldn't put the book down as I couldn't leave the author in such a terrible state, only to read him fall into even worse states! I honestly don't know how this guy is still alive! The stark and unapologetic descriptions of living on the streets of London were a revelation. But I found the descriptions of the physical state he ended up in very upsetting. Who knew that through scabbing and bleeding feet, your socks get stuck to your feet? I don't think I'll ever forget that particular description. Thank goodness he is as he is now helping others, thanks to The Princes Trust and the Turning Point organisation but mainly to him. I am rooting for this guy! He holds his hands up to his actions with no 'poor me' attitude.
November 12, 2018
It took me a long time to get through this book. I rarely read books written by UK writers primarily because I don't find their books as "easy" read. I find the writing style to be too formal as well as the slang words I am unfamiliar with.
Now, with this being said, I plowed my way to the end of Wasted due to it's subject matter. This is a non-fiction story of Mark Johnson's struggle of an extremely unhealthly family life when young, taking the path to substance abuse, and his INCREDIBLE strength to overcome, get clean, stay clean, and help others.
I would have liked to see a couple pages of pictures as well as a little more written about the personal details/struggles of becoming sober, and Mark's life of sobriety.
Now, with this being said, I plowed my way to the end of Wasted due to it's subject matter. This is a non-fiction story of Mark Johnson's struggle of an extremely unhealthly family life when young, taking the path to substance abuse, and his INCREDIBLE strength to overcome, get clean, stay clean, and help others.
I would have liked to see a couple pages of pictures as well as a little more written about the personal details/struggles of becoming sober, and Mark's life of sobriety.
May 22, 2020
Esse livro faz doer o coração de qualquer leitor que já conhece, pessoalmente ou através de amigos e familiares, a imensa luta contra o vício, seja drogas ou álcool. A intensidade da narrativa me deixou ansiosa pra continuar a leitura, pra saber como ele sobreviveu a tanta coisa, física e psicologicamente.
O que me deixou levemente desapontada é que ele relata pouco sobre como conseguiu se libertar de tudo aquilo, que pra ele parecia ser impossível e honestamente, pra mim também. É uma prova da força da capacidade humana de se regenerar, superar obstáculos imensos que dominam a vida de tal forma que viver sem eles parece ser impossível.
Recomendo a leitura!
O que me deixou levemente desapontada é que ele relata pouco sobre como conseguiu se libertar de tudo aquilo, que pra ele parecia ser impossível e honestamente, pra mim também. É uma prova da força da capacidade humana de se regenerar, superar obstáculos imensos que dominam a vida de tal forma que viver sem eles parece ser impossível.
Recomendo a leitura!
May 13, 2019
”The kid whose parents can see no further than the end of their own needles.”
WASTED is a painfully heartbreaking example of why people should not be allowed to have children without being qualified first! In the beginning of this true life account, my heart shattered over and over for Mark and his abused siblings, their story sounding much more like fiction. If only it were... Mark experiences his first taste of drugs at just 8 years old, spiraling into addiction from there.
Although I’ve read many, many memoirs and autobiographies, this one kept me interested and entertained from start to finish where others bored me at times. Mark gives us a very detailed, explicit look into his experiences, sharing his highest highs to his lowest lows. I’m so glad to see that he was able to overcome such hardship and write such a tragic yet powerful story!!!
WASTED is a painfully heartbreaking example of why people should not be allowed to have children without being qualified first! In the beginning of this true life account, my heart shattered over and over for Mark and his abused siblings, their story sounding much more like fiction. If only it were... Mark experiences his first taste of drugs at just 8 years old, spiraling into addiction from there.
Although I’ve read many, many memoirs and autobiographies, this one kept me interested and entertained from start to finish where others bored me at times. Mark gives us a very detailed, explicit look into his experiences, sharing his highest highs to his lowest lows. I’m so glad to see that he was able to overcome such hardship and write such a tragic yet powerful story!!!
August 1, 2020
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It dealt with many of the topics that you expect in a very delicate but serious manner. As much as I loved reading this book, it did take me a while to get through such a medium length book due to the serious topics that can be seen as triggers and upsetting. After a few of the chapters, I had to put the book down and have a break however, I appreciate this story being shared with fellow readers.
December 23, 2023
Brilliant book
This was an excellent read. The cycle of addiction that Mark experienced was so close to being catastrophic, this book is testament that every person has an opportunity at a second chance.
Mark gives a truly transparent account of his tough upbringing and life on the streets. Some parts make difficult reading but overall it is a brilliant read that I could not put down.
This was an excellent read. The cycle of addiction that Mark experienced was so close to being catastrophic, this book is testament that every person has an opportunity at a second chance.
Mark gives a truly transparent account of his tough upbringing and life on the streets. Some parts make difficult reading but overall it is a brilliant read that I could not put down.
August 9, 2024
I read this book previously when I found it in my old workplace so I borrowed it. I wanted to read it at the time to get a better sense of people I was working with (people who have suffered Trauma like Mark and used drugs, committed crime). It wasn't available in the library so I was very lucky to find a copy of it lying around.
It was a hard read in terms of the subject matter which can be painful and the experiences described were brutal. However it was a very real account of drug addiction and I found it useful to understand a drug user's world.
It was a hard read in terms of the subject matter which can be painful and the experiences described were brutal. However it was a very real account of drug addiction and I found it useful to understand a drug user's world.
January 21, 2022
Absolutely amazing!
I started this book this morning, and haven't put it down! Such an honest and humble approach, you feel right there with him through the whole book. Such an amazing story of abuse, dispair, desperation, humility and at last redemption. I cannot recommend this book enough!
I started this book this morning, and haven't put it down! Such an honest and humble approach, you feel right there with him through the whole book. Such an amazing story of abuse, dispair, desperation, humility and at last redemption. I cannot recommend this book enough!
August 6, 2022
I LOVED THIS BOOK. Just voraciously read it in like 2 days. Mark is a brilliant writer. The prose is sparse and perfect, the story incredible (and true). Read this book if you want to understand addiction, trauma and also if you want to laugh, cry and marvel at the strength of a real and wonderful human.
October 2, 2022
Emotional
Some of it was about things I understand as I mixed with drug takers in the 70s early 80s.I have a great friend from that time who is a ex heroin addict.most people I know took other things.it's a glace threw that wormhole I stood at the brink of all those years ago.the darkest parts I never saw in so much detail as in this book.glad I walked away.
Some of it was about things I understand as I mixed with drug takers in the 70s early 80s.I have a great friend from that time who is a ex heroin addict.most people I know took other things.it's a glace threw that wormhole I stood at the brink of all those years ago.the darkest parts I never saw in so much detail as in this book.glad I walked away.
September 9, 2025
Such a sad story but with a positive ending, realistically most people would have died with what he endured and injected.
A childhood of neglect and violence, leading to addiction and homelessness. So tragic that this is some kids reality with no way out.
A bit dragged out and his recovery was skimmed over.
A childhood of neglect and violence, leading to addiction and homelessness. So tragic that this is some kids reality with no way out.
A bit dragged out and his recovery was skimmed over.
January 7, 2017
Tragic true story of a boy growing up in a violent family and his descent into a life of drugs and crime. Eventually, he ends up sleeping rough on London streets, scary what goes on right under your nose as you wander into work. Has a very positive ending though!
January 16, 2019
Amazing, how a man survives the living help of the choices he makes.. A brilliant read.. Good work Mark..
Fantasic, it makes you realise your life is not as bad as you once thought it..
Keep fighting, your hard work will pay off..
Fantasic, it makes you realise your life is not as bad as you once thought it..
Keep fighting, your hard work will pay off..
August 22, 2020
This was without a doubt the best addiction memoir I've ever read. I couldn't put it down. It provides a fascinating insight into homeless life on the streets of London, including minute details most of us would never think of.
January 11, 2024
Heartbreaking but heartwarming
Wow!!
What a book. Couldn’t put it down.
It has highlighted for me how important it is to be kind and see beyond the surface.
Love and nurture in those early years could have prevented this long and painful journey for Mark.
Wow!!
What a book. Couldn’t put it down.
It has highlighted for me how important it is to be kind and see beyond the surface.
Love and nurture in those early years could have prevented this long and painful journey for Mark.
August 25, 2017
I really enjoyed this bleak memoir by Mark Johnson. The writing itself can be a bit dry and basic but the impact of the story itself makes up for that easily.
May 7, 2018
A gritty powerful book about the nature of addiction; hitting rock bottom before slowly and painfully climbing back up.
May 17, 2018
Amazing
As a recovering alcoholic I identify so much. I think this book will change my life. I was with you all the way. A day at a time. Absolutely amazing.
As a recovering alcoholic I identify so much. I think this book will change my life. I was with you all the way. A day at a time. Absolutely amazing.
July 7, 2018
I’m so happy
I’m so emotional after reading your book, I am so happy that mark is living a good life . Keep fighting!!
I’m so emotional after reading your book, I am so happy that mark is living a good life . Keep fighting!!
October 30, 2018
At times shocking, at time funny had a big impact on my work with young people.
November 3, 2018
Good read will eye opener...sad story about the life of addiction an homelessness an hopelessness
Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews