In Love with Hell: Drink in the Lives and Work of Eleven Writers

by William Palmer

Why do some writers destroy themselves by drinking alcohol? Before our health-conscious age it would be true to say that many writers drank what we now regard as excessive amounts. Graham Greene, for instance, drank on a daily basis quantities of spirits and wine and beer most doctors would consider as being dangerous to his health. But he was rarely out of control and lived with his considerable wits intact to the age of eighty-six. W. H. Auden drank the most of a bottle of spirits a day, but also worked hard and steadily every day until his death. Even T. S. Eliot, for all his pontifical demeanour, was extremely fond of gin and was once observed completely drunk on a London Tube station by a startled friend. These were not writers who are generally regarded as alcoholics. 'Alcoholic' is, in any case, a slippery word, as exemplified by Dylan Thomas's definition of an alcoholic as 'someone you dislike who drinks as much as you.' The word is still controversial and often misunderstood and misapplied. What acclaimed novelist and poet William Palmer's book is interested in is the effect that heavy drinking had on writers, how they lived with it and were sometimes destroyed by it, and how they described the whole private and social world of the drinker in their work.

He looks at Patrick Hamilton ('the feverish magic that alcohol can work'); Jean Rhys ('As soon as I sober up I start again'); Charles Jackson ('Delirium is a disease of the night'); Malcolm Lowry ('I love hell. I can't wait to go back there'); Dylan Thomas ('A womb with a view'); John Cheever ('The singing of the bottles in the pantry'); Flann O'Brien ('A pint of plain is your only man'); Anthony Burgess ('Writing is an agony mitigated by drink'); Kingsley Amis ('Beer makes you drunk'); Richard Yates ('The road to Revolutionary Road'); and Elizabeth Bishop ('The writer's writer's writer').

Genres: Alcohol, Nonfiction

236 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 22, 2021

Reviews

[JARROD WARD · Rating 4 out of 5]

A literary person's dive into the nuance of drinking writers' descents. If you are a fan of writing on the lives of writers this is an unapologetic account of their lives, their work, relationships, and their battle (or ecstatic supplication) to drinking and drunkardness. A straightforward account of the, "singing of the bottles in the pantry" and it's affects on Dylan Thomas, John Cheever, Kingsley Amis, Jean Rhys and other writers who, "scurry hopelessly about, looking for an exit."

[Jake · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light read that divulges a brief run through of each writer’s life, significant works and their relationship with alcohol. It is interesting how for some it diminishes talent and yet for otherwise seems to inspire renewed energy. The need for each chapter to be quite brief is evident though you were left with further inquiries at times. Some of these drank to hide in alcohol induced paralysis for a while, some to fight sexual repressions (or indeed to indulge in them), some to take cudgels with misery and some simply for the love of it. Above all else, it ought to ease any concerns you have about your own alcohol intake. Stepping further into the myriad psychological plays at hand would have elevated this but again, the relative brevity is quite understandable.

[ger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light biographical run through of eleven writers who had issues with alcohol. Each chapter leaves out as much as it gives and I felt slightly let down. There's not enough information and if you do know any of the writers, I don't think you'll learn much. Some of it is just Palmer's memories of pubs in the 60's. There's no real insight into 'Alcoholism' which is obviously more complex than the medical view would have us believe. Interesting if limited.

[Tony Lawrence]

Finished - review to follow (not the Kindle version, obviously!) A gift from a bookgroup friend, a fascinating idea, why do otherwise intelligent, rational, and productive writers turn to drink, sometimes in life-limited and often life-ending quantities?

Reading this after a book about behavioural genetics made me think of the underlying causes of alcoholism, i.e. if there is a predisposition to such addiction and some corresponding correlation with creativity (ref. Robert Plomin ‘Blueprint'). Palmer looks at a layman’s understanding of alcoholism and whether, and, in this case writers, suffer because-of, or despite, their psychology and chemical dependency.

Each individual memoir was fascinating in itself, even if I didn’t know the authors (about half), it was a glimpse into some C20th social history, and the prevalence of pub culture, now diminished. Palmer - an author himself - mentions a few more famous authors in his introduction (Graham Greene, T.S.Eliot, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, from a much longer list), but focuses on some lesser known artists. In some cases their output seems to be autobiographical and limited by health (e.g Jackson ‘The Lost Weekend’, and Lowry ‘Under the Volcano’), in others the writer continues to produce a large and varied output until a relatively normal lifespan (Burgess & Amis).

Some are solo drinkers, others crave company and the comfort of a pub or bar. They are not all morbid and self-destructive (as an outsider might expect), but they mostly come with a cruel and abusive streak, as if they are manifesting and projecting an inner pain on others, consciously or otherwise.

Some seem to hold down a relatively normal work and family life, but most are dysfunctional, chaotic, and selfish. For some we can see some underlying triggers or environmental factors (suppressed sexuality, self-doubt, early introduction to drink), but correlation isn’t causation.

Of all the authors I am most family with Dylan Thomas, who comes across as a deeply troubled man with an early death caused in part by a mis-diagnosed health condition, although by his late 30’s the creative impulse seemed to be drying up. We - and Palmer - are still left with the fundamental question, whether there is an element of ‘choice’ involved, that may start with liking the taste and the effects [of drink], even craving the oblivion, from the book title, "I love hell. I can't wait to get back there" (Lowry). Back to Plomin, choice can come down to some genetic predisposition, strongly influenced by where one is on a spectrum of pathological markers, hard-wired genes. I am no closer to knowing whether there is a causal association with writers, if not they seem to be an unlucky and blighted species!

[Larry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book sale pickup with little thought to fill the bag. This is an overall depressing read, not the fault of the writer, but there is only so much self-destruction one can witness chapter after chapter. By the time I had read most of the unfortunate mini bios I felt a bit unclean like a voyeur of pain, knowing the ending. I started the reading with Flann O'Brien, one of my favourite writers, being quite familiar with his life story. The encapsulation of his life was adequate but as I found in so many of these mini biographies the root cause of their alcoholism was much greater than what could be disseminated in a short few pages. I found his effort on Lowry and Rhys the best in the book. WIthout wishing to be distasteful there is a distinct divide in the subject matter here....those who were "heavy drinkers" who were productive and those who one would call "non-functioning alcoholics" portrayed here.
These writers are so often too easy to categorize. Many are also too ready to add a speciall label, especially in the case of Dylan Thomas, without having read one word of his works. It is no secret that many writers in general are very fond of "the Jar" and yet it never creates the pandemonium created in the extreme cases portrayed here, Auden, Greene etc., . Interesting but depressing also.

[Kym Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable but superficial both as regards the lives and the works of the writers examined. The author is clearly very sympathetic to the writer who enjoys a drink and clearly enjoys writing about the times the writers lived in (there are no contemporary writers examined; all of them were born before WWII) and the drinking/pub culture of those times, which could be quite interesting.

Overall: recommended if you’re interested in this sort of thing.

[Schopflin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend lent this to me. I had 'a quick look' at the introduction and was drawn into reading the whole thing. It's brilliantly written with fascinating detail on the lives of the writers and some real insight into what makes people drink to excess.

[Emma Heyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent compilation, easy to dip into and makes you want to read the works of all listed.