
Symptoms of Withdrawal
A Memoir of Snapshots and Redemption
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Narrated by:
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Christopher Kennedy Lawford
As the firstborn child of famed Rat Pack actor Peter Lawford and Patricia Kennedy, sister to John F. Kennedy, Christopher Kennedy Lawford grew up with presidents and movie stars as close relatives and personal friends.
Lawford recalls Marilyn Monroe teaching him to dance the twist in his living room when he was still a toddler, being awakened late at night by his uncle Jack to hear him announce his candidacy for president, being perched atop a high-roller craps table in Las Vegas while Frank Sinatra and his Rat Pack swapped jokes and threw dice, and other treasured memories of his youth as part of America's royal family.
In spite of this seemingly idyllic childhood, Lawford's early life was marked by the traumatic assassinations of his beloved uncles Jack and Bobby, and he soon succumbed to the burgeoning drug scene of the 1970s during his teen years. With compelling realism mixed with equal doses of self-deprecating wit, youthful bravado, and hard-earned humility, Symptoms of Withdrawal chronicles Lawford's deep and long descent into near-fatal drug and alcohol addiction, and his subsequent formidable path back to the sobriety he has preserved for the past 20 years.
©2005 Christopher Kennedy Lawford (P)2005 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
"You don't have to care about Kennedys to find this a moving tale of self-discovery and redemption. Whatever else he may have been, son, nephew, cousin, etc., Christopher Lawford shows himself here to be a writer of talent and grace." (Publishers Weekly)
Is there anything you would change about this book?
Chris Kennedy Lawford's got it all: fame, money, fortune and family. He's honest about his addiction to alcohol and drugs. He pins it on his family and himself. It is refreshing at least. Too bad he squanders it all and divorces his wife and kids in the end just after you think he's got his act together. Spoiled rich kid. Boo hoo.What did I learn from it? My life's not so bad after all. Chris could have offered more learning concepts about how to make better life choices, especially if you have an addictive personality. This is a tell-all autobiography to air out his dirty laundry and try to redeem himself. I'd say he's still messed up.
If you’ve listened to books by Christopher Kennedy Lawford before, how does this one compare?
averageDid Christopher Kennedy Lawford do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?
He fawns over the males: the Kennedys, his cousins, his father, movie stars. Very little about the predominate females: mother, aunts, grandmother, sisters, his wife. Lots tabloid tales about bimbos and escapades. What's more important, Chris? Feels a bit empty and out of balance. But then, I'm a female so why should I have expected more from Chris on this side of the table?If this book were a movie would you go see it?
noBorn with the silver spoon
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THIS BOOK IS A GREAT LISTEN!!
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A Courageous History of a Flawed Person
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Thoroughly enjoyable and much appreciated.
I plan to read again.
Wonderfully told.
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So as a narrator, Christopher Lawford has a pleasant voice and (one of my pet peeves) is good with pronunciations.
It's an autobiographical account of his life so one tends to take some things with a grain of salt. Still, he covered things that I remembered from the hardcover edition and seems to be fairly honest with his shortcomings. Definitely worth a repeat listen.
Would have liked an unabridged version
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What a great voice and what a book!
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Basic recovery read
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The narrator was goid
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A good read totally ruined by the ending
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What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
CKL taking ownership of his shortcomings, not casting blame everywhere possible.Would you ever listen to anything by Christopher Kennedy Lawford again?
NopeWho would you have cast as narrator instead of Christopher Kennedy Lawford?
His therapist since I felt I was present for his sessions during this book.If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Symptoms of Withdrawal?
Just about all of them.Any additional comments?
Not impressed. The Kennedy name is the only selling point of this book. Sorry.Whiny rich kid
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