Flowers in the Blood: The Story of Opium

by Jeff Goldberg, William S. Burroughs (Introduction), Dean Latimer (Contributor)

The ultimate book on the incredible, and complex history of opium throughout the world.Flowers in the Blood lifts the veil of mystery that has surrounded opium down through the ages. Inside, Why a three-thousand-year-old statue of a Greek goddess was crowned with poppies The formulas for Hippocrates’s ancient opium remedies Why the Islamic councils of the wise vilified hashish but venerated opium What really provoked the Opium Wars in China Why John Jacob Astor quit the opium trade The unique role played by Chinese opium in the birth of the American labor movementOpium has played a dramatic and varied role in human history, inspiring religious veneration, scientific exploration, the bitterest rancor, and the most fanciful ecstasy. Now, authors Jeff Goldberg and Dean Latimer have provided a complete, insightful history of opium.Along the way, the authors provide details of the addictions of S. T. Coleridge, Thomas De Quincey, and other literary opium-eaters of the nineteenth century, as well as chronicling the progress of antidrug laws and the ongoing search for an addiction cure.Originally published in 1981, this edition of Flowers in the Blood has been updated with a new preface by Goldberg. At times disconcerting-raising serious questions about attitudes and approaches toward powerful drugs and their control-Flowers in the Blood is an essential addition to the literature of opium, and a wide-awake look at the stuff that dreams (and nightmares) are made of.Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Drugs, Audiobook, Science, Ebooks

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1981

Reviews

[Isabelle Duchaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Someone should actually write an exciting history about the opium war(s). Because I am STRUGGLING to find something, and there's so many interesting themes to work with.

Originally written in the 70s, with an updated preface, this book holds up ok. Most interesting chapters were on racism and the "Yellow Peril", and how opium impacted China - American trade policies. It's a good pre-read to "Dreamland".

[David Wallis · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, this is weird and I've never seen it before in mainstream paperback or hardcover: toward the back of the book three pages of an earlier chapter (9, Yellow Peril) crashed into the last chapter (The Cure), and displaced about 50 pages. I thought I'd lost my mind.

Overall, to be taken with a grain (or lick) of salt given the author/editors' pedigrees (High Times magazine etc.).

I enjoyed the way opium is used as vehicle to show how money and power shape and choke the lives of the ordinary and elites alike. No real surprises if you've been reading and paying a bit of attention to the war on drugs/poor.

I would recommend if you are thirsty for the counterculture, and especially if you are a sheltered history buff.

Caveat-I am a person in recovery and work with addicts. I read this with an eye toward some professional enlightenment as well. Didn't exactly find it, but mostly enjoyed it.

[John Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book covering the history of opium, liberally infused with antidotes from writers through the ages as well as challenging evidence against the wisdom of present day drug enforcement agencies.

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exasperating chronicle of willful ignorance and culpable greed on view in the history of opium and its various derivatives. Perhaps more detail than I really wanted, but still worth listening to. Confirms my sense that the "war on drugs" has been a useless political charade, one more incident in a long history of classism which normalizes drug use among the wealthy while demonizing cheaper varieties used by the poor and/or "outsiders," ie, racially othered. Didn't know that McCarthy was a morphine addict (along with alcohol) in later life, supplied by the head of the federal narcotics agency.

[SJ. Hasanain · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the worst books I ever read. Authors are rambling through the history of dope use through the past few millennia as if no one knew that. Their conclusion at the end of the book proposes an idiotic notion that the best way to deal with drug addiction is to ignore it and hide it under the rug. They apparently had no clue as to the pain and misery what it brings to the loved ones.

[Özgür Takmaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Message to be taken: if you want something to spread, make it illegal. Make it illegal and it becomes rare. Something rare is a thing expensive. Expensive things attract insatiable businessman. And this businessman creates new markets, even at the end of the world. So it goes spreading.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read

I feel like I learned something about history and how the plant became what it is now. Glad I read it lol

[Lilith Velkor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating history of opium in western culture from ancient times through the opium wars to the current day.

[stefanddddddd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A history of the opium influence across centuries and its close link to cultures and societies

[Cate · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is very important to read the new introduction to this book because it was originally published in the seventies. Naturally, attitudes have changed, new treatments have been developed, and many theories have been modified or rejected.
Otherwise the background and history of the opium trade around the world was fascinating. As was the way in which opium as well as other drugs such as alcohol, hashish, etc. were viewed by different cultures was insightful.

[Harijan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book. Not sure why people don't like it. Maybe because it includes a convincing argument that the wealth and power of the South Eastern United States (stronghold of the Christian Right) was made possible by the first global wave of opium addiction?

That is going to irk a few preachers.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Longer, more comprehensive, and more colorful than John H. Halpern's Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World, but also noticeably more dated (1981 vs. 2019) and for reasons that are hard to pin down, Flowers in the Blood feels less reliable than Opium. Both feel dated compared to Ben Westhoff's Fentanyl, Inc..

[Youssef Mamdouh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read almost 40% of the book. Bad one.

[Maggie C. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting, but a bit dry.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't confuse this book with the novel of the same name by Gay Courter which is the one I really intended to read. This one's a bore.

[Emily Kestrel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the original edition of this a couple of decades ago--as I recall, it was informative and entertaining.

[gherrie schwartz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like this book

I thought it was dull boring and really just not what i want to spend my time on
Again not worth the money