Out Of It: A Cultural History Of Intoxication

'Out Of It' is a superbly informed and sharply observed tour through the history, legality and chemistry of the many substances we use to get high.

Dealing with the full range of drugs (including cocaine, cannabis, caffeine, ecstasy, nicotine, heroin and alcohol) and their effects, Stuart Walton's book also has a shocking but compelling central argument: that we not only have an abiding desire to consume intoxicating substances, but actually have a right to do so. And that the harm they can do is greatly outweighed by the variety of experience they make possible and the considerable enjoyment we derive from taking them.