| George Kuc creatively and appropriately entitled | | | | an alcoholic deploys in his quest for |
| his novella, Fermented Memories. In it he takes | | | | lightheadedness. George Kuc rotates the |
| you on the journey of an alcoholic, Jack, facing | | | | interactions of a small cast of characters in Jack's |
| the challenge of his addiction to wine. | | | | life to illustrate how the desire for inebriation |
| Compromising his personal honesty to the | | | | dictates the choices for companionship an alcoholic |
| seduction of the vino, Jack shapes his life around - | | | | keeps. With the temptation to drink weighed |
| what he calls, "His hobby" --that of drinking wine. | | | | against the practical realism of work responsibilities |
| After receiving a DUI and faced with the | | | | and dodging the ominous DUI lurking around every |
| suspicious scrutiny of his mother and sister | | | | corner while driving under the influence, the reader |
| checking in on him, Jack stumbles through his daily | | | | gets a sense for the decision making process of |
| routine of minimizing his personal responsibilities | | | | alcohol addiction. Although not referred to as |
| thus maximizing his savoring of the fermented | | | | "co-dependent" in the book, Jack's relationships |
| grape juice. During the course of life's events, he | | | | with his guy friends, his girlfriends, and his family all |
| meets Marci, another alcoholic, and they find | | | | provide the basic elements of enabling Jack's |
| immediate bliss in sharing their joint passion for | | | | behavior. |
| drinking. Laced with the clever techniques | | | | Fermented Memories is a terse book, focused on |
| alcoholics use to mask their drinking, like putting | | | | the sole subject of Jack's love of wine. The book |
| white wine in lemonade containers and red in | | | | has a point, a message, and is set in a limited |
| cranberry juice bottles, George Kuc portrays the | | | | time of Jack's life when his life choice manifested |
| step by step demise of Jack prior to his first step | | | | itself as an unavoidable set of circumstances. |
| in his 12 step program. | | | | Surely recommended reading for any recovering |
| Set in Southern California, where wine tasting | | | | alcoholic or AA group discussion, George Kuc's |
| rooms and wineries as in Solvang lure the victims | | | | message is strongly positive. He writes in a |
| of such a disease, Fermented Memories projects | | | | forgiving and realistic manner which affirms hope. |
| a realistic version of the manipulative techniques | | | | |