Thirst: A Novel of Lost Innocence and Redemption, by H.W. Terrance, is a heartfelt addiction and recovery memoir. The story follows a protagonist who’s never named, but referred to as the boy, the hound, and later, the man.
The book is told in a series of very short chapters, highlighting scenes or day in the protagonist’s life. This gives a diary feel, which works with the honest and heartfelt narration.
Thirst begins with the boy’s early years, highlighting childhood pleasures like playing hockey and street games, and setbacks like awkward braces and moving to a new city. The boy notices that his mother provides food and care, but never offers affection to her children, and later as an adult, he becomes a father who provides food and shelter, but no emotional stability. His loneliness, desire for connection, and unresolved emotions lead him toward substance abuse, setting the stage for a tumultuous journey marked by repeated setbacks and attempts at change.
Terrance portrays the Hound’s alcoholism as both a series of poor choices and a desire for escape. As noted in a review from Reader Thoughts, “The book shows addiction not just as a bad habit but as something deeper, connected to pain and feelings of being unloved. The boy’s struggles with drinking and bad choices are described in a way that makes you understand why he does what he does.” In the beginning, the Hound feels familiar, like that one guy at a party who gets a little too drunk and starts some crazy shenanigans, but then the Hound doesn’t grow out of this. Drinking to excess isn’t a one-off or a college stage for him, even as he gets a professional job and becomes a father, he’s still drinking heavily, and still landing in fights, jail, or car wrecks. There’s no cinematic rock bottom moment in Thirst, it’s a more realistic series of mistakes and setbacks for the Hound. And of course, each setback points the protagonist back to his coping mechanism, and he’s drinking again.
The second half of the novel looks at the protagonist’s family dynamics, during his first attempts at recovery and his first failures. This emphasizes how alcoholism and recovery extends beyond the individual, and affects loved ones. This is where I felt tension, because I did and didn’t want Marie to leave. I wanted her to ditch the Hound and go meet someone who wasn’t going to keep letting her and the kids down, over and over! But I also wanted the Hound to have all the love, support and stability that Marie provided. The book really shows the ups and downs of this relationship. Each time she kicked him out, I wanted Marie to get a better and more peaceful life, but I also wanted the Hound to take this one as the time he really really sobered up and became a good partner.
Thirst is described as a story of lost innocence, but it’s a hopeful story. The unnamed protagonist goes through multiple attempts to quit drinking, which leads him to explore why he drinks, and that leads him to attempts to be a better person, some one who is honest, loyal and reliable. The main message is just a man trying to be a good person, and then eventually spreading that message to others.
Overall, H.W. Terrance’s Thirst provides an honest exploration of addiction and recovery.