Stash : My Life in Hiding

A propulsive and vivid memoir — in the vein of Drinking: A Love Story and Somebody’s Daughter — about the journey to sobriety and self-love amidst addiction, privilege, racism, and self-sabotage from the host of the popular podcast The Only One in the Room. After years of hiding her addiction from everyone — from stockpiling pills in her Louboutins to elaborately scheduling withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers, and tennis matches — Laura Cathcart Robbins settles into a complicated purgatory. She learns the hard way that privilege doesn’t protect you from pain. Facing divorce, the possibility of a gruelling custody battle, and internalized racism, Robbins wonders just how much more she can take. Now, with courage and candid openness, she reveals how she managed to begin the long journey towards sobriety and unexpectedly finding new love. Robbins harrowingly illustrates taking down the wall she built around herself brick by brick and what it means to be Black in a startingly white world. "Sometimes, Robbins hits just the right note... However, the back and forth of repeated scamming attempts, rationalizations, cold sweats, evasions, therapy sessions in rehab, and negotiations over an eventual divorce takes on a certain numbing sameness after a while... Breaks little new ground, but a solid cautionary tale about the dangers of drug addiction and the struggle to overcome it." - Kirkus ReviewsWith its raw, finely crafted, and engaging prose, Stash is the story of just how badly the facade she created had to shatter before Laura could reconnect to her true self. "An emotionally absorbing and swiftly paced multisensory experience." — The New York Times Book Review Named a Best Memoir of 2023 by Elle In the vein of Somebody's Daughter , this wild, vivid addiction memoir from the host of the podcast The Only One in the Room "will inspire, awe, entertain, educate, and help so many readers" (Christie Tate, New York Times bestselling author) with a journey to sobriety and self-love amidst privilege and racism. After years of hiding her addiction from everyone—stockpiling pills in her Louboutins and elaborately scheduling her withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers, and tennis matches—Laura Cathcart Robbins is running out of places to hide. She has learned the hard way that even her high-profile marriage and Hollywood lifestyle can't protect her from the pain she's keeping bottled up inside. Facing divorce, the possibility of a grueling custody battle, and the insistent voice of internalized racism that nags at her as a Black woman in a startlingly white world, Laura wonders just how much more she can take. Now, with courageous and candid openness, she reveals how she started the long journey towards sobriety, unexpectedly found new love, and dismantled the wall she had built around herself, brick by brick. With its raw, finely crafted, and engaging prose, Stash is "emotionally riveting...usher[ing] in a new way for us to talk and read about the paradoxes of addiction, race, family, class, and gender." (Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy ). "An irresistibly delicious story." —Holly Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author A propulsive and vivid memoir—in the vein of Drinking: A Love Story and Somebody's Daughter —about the journey to sobriety and self-love amidst addiction, privilege, racism, and self-sabotage from the host of the popular podcast The Only One in the Room . After years of hiding her addiction from everyone—from stockpiling pills in her Louboutins to elaborately scheduling withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers, and tennis matches—Laura Cathcart Robbins settles into a complicated purgatory. She learns the hard way that privilege doesn't protect you from pain. Facing divorce, the possibility of a grueling custody battle, and internalized racism, Robbins wonders just how much more she can take. Now, with courage and candid openness, she reveals how she managed to begin the long journey... "A voice-driven, gripping, and propulsive addiction memoir about a wealthy Black woman on a journey to becoming whole while grappling with issues of substance abuse, race, class, self-sabotage, and love, by the host of the popular podcast, The Only One in the Room"-- Provided by publisher