Don Cahalan, Understanding America's Drinking Problem: How to Combat the Hazards of Alcohol. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1987.

The author ably explains the history of drinking in America.

Alice Fleming, Alcohol: The Delightful Poison. New York: Delacorte, 1975. An informative, colorful history of alcohol use throughout history.

Mark S. Gold, The Good News About Drugs and Alcohol. New York: Villard Books, 1991. Gold, a doctor, explains how alcohol and other drugs harm people and how they can be treated for their addiction.

Katherine Ketcham and William F. Asbury, Beyond the Influence: Understanding and Defeating Alcoholism. New York: Bantam Books, 2000. A well-written, informative discussion of the disease of alcoholism.

Cynthia Kuhn, Scott Swartzwelder, and Wilkie Wilson, Buzzed: The Straight Facts About the Most Used and Abused Drugs from Alcohol to Ecstacy. New York: W. W. Norton, 1998. Although it deals with addiction to a variety of drugs, the section on...