Story Archives of 'Alcohol Abuse'

There’s a new movement to lower the drinking age from 21 back to 18, and it comes from an unlikely corner: the presidents of more than 100 colleges and universities, who say the law encourages underage and clandestine drinking on campus. But not everyone’s bellying up to the bar on this notion. We’ll hear from both sides of the debate.

Guests

• John McCardell, founder of the Amethyst Initiative, an organization made up of chancellors and presidents of universities and colleges across the country looking to lower the drinking age
• Lydia Valliere, Director and Victim Advocate for the New Hampshire Division of Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Heather King spent much of her teen and adult years drinking heavily, blacking out, and being unhappy with herself for not living up to her potential. After many years of sobriety, she's written about those lost years in her new memoir, "Parched". (This interview originally aired on July 12, 2005)

Heather King spent much of her teen and adult years drinking heavily, blacking out, and being unhappy with herself for not living up to her potential. After many years of sobriety, she's written about those lost years in her new memoir, "Parched".

NHPR News wraps up its series on substance abuse with a one-hour radio special. Join hosts John Walters and Shay Zeller for an in-depth look at how addiction affects New Hampshire. We'll check-in with NHPR reporters and Judge Ed Kelly, Chair of the Governor's Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. Sullivan County Attorney Mark Hathaway will explain how heroin changed a few rural communities in the western part of the state, and Poet Donald Hall will read from his book "Willow Temple".

Ernest Hebert is a writer who likes to drink, but he keeps it under control, unlike the characters in his novels. Ernest's books explore the lives of the down and out of rural New Hampshire. His book, A Little More than Kin, is about a man whose live is destroyed by alcohol. His upcoming novel, Spoonwood is about a man who takes to the woods with his infant son to defeat a drinking problem.

Ernest joins us to talk about the longstanding link between drinking and writing, how much of it is truth or fiction, and whether a good drink can help the writing process. He'll also talk about alcohol in real-life New Hampshire.