Suburban Junky: From Honor Roll to Heroin Addict

by Jude Hassan

Jude Hassan was an ordinary, all-American kid. He had two amazing parents who gave him everything, especially a loving home. At fourteen, Jude's family moved from their home in the city to a beautiful suburban town on the outskirts of St. Louis. Suddenly, Jude was faced with being the new kid for the first time in his young life. He struggled to find his way in his new surroundings but continued to make straight A’s and excel in sports. When a fellow student approached him about attending a party, he was apprehensive but eager to experience his first social gathering. Unfortunately, that was the night that Jude was introduced to marijuana. Within weeks, Jude was experimenting with harder drugs, including prescription pills. Eventually, he was introduced to heroin as a sophomore and his life was never the same. Slowly but surely, he lost everything. It took multiple stints in rehab, two enforced jail detoxes, his father’s cancer diagnosis, and a looming multi-decade prison sentence to bring him back from the dark hole he found himself in.A note from the “When I first wrote Suburban Junky, the United States was in the midst of a relentless heroin epidemic. Ten years later, it pains me to say that things have only gotten worse. Heroin has taken a back seat to fentanyl, a synthetic opioid one-hundred times stronger than morphine and fifty times stronger than heroin. In 2021, drug overdose deaths topped 100,000 for the first time on record. That amounts to one overdose death every five minutes. To make matters even worse, counterfeit pills have flooded the streets. Illegal pill presses are churning out fentanyl-laced Percocets and Xanax bars at an alarming rate. In turn, these pills are then pushed to unsuspecting teens and addicts all across the country. It’s a toxic combination that has led to incredible pain and suffering and far too many deaths.I hope that my story will help bring awareness to the perils of teenage drug use. I hope that my story saves the kid out there who might be lost, or stuck at a crossroads like I was. Finally, for those already suffering, there is life after drugs. It is beautiful and achievable.”

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Biography, Addiction

Kindle Edition

First published October 16, 2012

About the author

Jude Hassan was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and lives there to this day with his wife and son. Jude published his memoir, Suburban Junky, following the loss of his dear friend to addiction. Along with his role as a speaker and mentor to those seeking help with substance abuse, Jude works at an organization that provides behavioral health services in the St. Louis region. Jude's story has garnered both local and national attention due to its relevance to today's heroin, prescription pill, and fentanyl epidemics.

Reviews

[Barry Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suburban Junky is a must read. As the father of an addict and someone who has struggled with this disease myself for many years, I was touched by Hassan's story of hope and redemption. The way he describes what he went through with addiction and the places it took him is truly magical. His voice is so raw and full of grit and beauty. I highly advise anyone out there to read this book, addict or not.

[Gary Feldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZING BOOK. Finished it in a day. Couldn't put this one down. Hope it gets the attention it deserves. So powerful and ends well for an addiction memoir. I can't say enough about this one. Jude, great things are due your way. I feel like I know you now after reading your book.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful book. The author's description of what happens to him physically during the years of his drug abuse and recovery is so vivid, and I am sure accurate.
This book scares me because it shows how strong the force peer pressure is even if a person has been raised by parents who are attentive, loving, and giving their kids a message that drugs can mess you up.
I highly recommend this one to parents, especially those parents who think it could never happen to their child. Drugs are out there in our world and it is hard to say how kids will react given the situation they are in.

[Nikki Ruffino-Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Drugs are hell disguised as heaven.

This memoir was very real and unfiltered. I absolutely applaud you Jude for sharing your life with us. I am always drawn to memoirs that revolve around substance abuse, as this one did. Jude kept us readers there and in every single moment and event alongside him. I have said this before and I will say it again, it is like we are a fly on the wall watching everything happen. Bravo on getting clean and living your best life now Jude, all love always.

"sharing stories and blunts and plates of H, until we were falling down wasted and half-dead. It was glamorous in a toxic way." -Jude

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved loved this book. It is a difficult read, and Jude does not sugarcoat any of it.

From the bad and the ugly, he details his fall into addiction. I read a lot of addiction memoirs. This is one of the best reads when it comes to seeing how low even "good boys" can fall.

It is obvious that the love of his family has made so much of an impression on Jude and its touching.

I would love for him to write a sequel.

Love this.

[Niccibl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This heart-breaking and courageous tale should be a wake-up call to parents, teachers, and students on the dangers of heroine. A hard-to-read, but important, story, I will recommend this to students and teachers alike. This slim memoir has a lot to say. Congratulations to Mr. Hasssan for having the bravery to publish this piece.

[Kelly Kirtley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a must read it will take 1 day. It's kind of like watching a train wreck you want to pull away but can't. Hard to read especially knowing this is at Lafayette HS where my kids go. He offers a good perspective on how a kid falls into this life.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book with a story that I hope will help many people. Kiddos to Jude for being brave enough to put his story out there.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Marcus Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. What a story. It's nice and refreshing to read an addiction memoir that end well. Jude, hats off to you. I will recommend this book to all of my friends and family.

[Colleen Devlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

A touching memoir, but outta, wanna and hafta are not words.

[Brian Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb book, style, and explosive stories that tore through my imagination like a knife. Truly, a great book. Lets just hope it reaches those who need it most.

[Anabelle Marks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this one. Will recommend. Was close to my heart, as I share a personal story with the author.

[Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I commend this man for writing this story, but it definitely read like a Lifetime movie.

[Skyla Koch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very interesting to me, especially since the author was from St. Louis. Hearing about everything he went through made me want to read it more. I highly recommend.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously scary since this guy grew up RIGHT HERE and went to my kids’ high school. Glad he got clean. Would love to have heard the story from his mom’s point of view.

[Isabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story and highly recommend for others my age

[Brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. I gasped audibly multiple times. I was definitely naive to everything about this culture until now.

[Avery · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was insanely good. It gave me such a good inside look on what it is really like to be addicted to not only drugs but specifically heroin. In school we are always told "don't do drugs" and "drugs are bad" but this book was so much different. It didn't have to tell you how bad drugs and heroin is it showed you. Jude Hassan, the author of the book, writes a personal narrative about his struggles with drug abuse. The story is very moving and gives you chills as you read the book. I would highly recommend this book no matter who you are. The author pulls you in and doesn't let you go until you have read every last word in he has to say. You won't want to put it down even though you are scared of Jude's next move.

[Benny Vandenborre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but effective, and uniquely succinct

I enjoyed this story and was so impressed with the quality of the writing! The author was able to choose the most important details of his journey, both bad and good without too much mundane details and unnecessary commentary on it. You never feel as if he glossed over anything important yet by the length of the story alone you know he must've done just that. Often addiction memoirs do the opposite and end up 100 pages or more longer than this story yet you know a lot was omitted.

Best of wishes to Mr. Hassan and his family

[Amanda Tolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

💔🥺😭 this book has been the most heartbreaking book I’ve ever read! It hits so close to home and it happens every day to kids in our own backyard.
While reading this book, just as you think Jude has hit rock bottom & things couldn’t get any worse for him or his family, guess again! That wasn’t rock bottom. My heart goes out to his mother and father for everything that he put them through. The fact that Jude got his “happy ending” and is living a sober life is incredible. I hope his story brings hope to someone who is struggling and helps pull them out of their downward spiral of addiction.

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast, disturbing read. Reading familiar names and places makes this way too close for comfort. Writes with brutal honesty and without blame toward anyone but self. So glad author survived to tell story. Essential reading.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. Sad but realistic. Never put it down. A must read if you are struggling with addiction or loved someone with addiction

Great read. Sad but realistic. Never put it down. A must read if you are struggling with addiction or loved someone with addiction

[Katie Covalcine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

This was an amazing book about a teens struggle with addiction because of peer pressure. Couldn't put it down. My favorite book.

[Lisa Adkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Gained some great insite into the heroin epidemic that is killing so many young people. Would be a great read for all wanting to gain insite to this epidemic.

[Julie Robinson lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great read! It opened my eyes to the heroin epidemic.

[Sara Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honest

Honest and open about addiction. People really get a strong view of the difficulties addicts face on a daily basis.

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

A scary and powerful story.

[Kimberly Greer-Alford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very powerful book, appropriate for teen readers but I think parents should be open to the discussion it could and should spark.

[Syndee Olney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose to read this book because my daughter is an addict. I wanted to see if it would allow me to understand her mind and addiction just a little bit. It did help understand the battle. Thank you for sharing your story. It brought me to tears, however it was a lesson that I needed. I hope you are still sober and thriving!