Reader’s Favorite …

Blue Andrews is a suicide survivor who managed to turn his life around. Choosing Life is a candid confession in which he details his descent into depression and alcoholism. … He divides this book into two parts that he aptly entitles Up and Down. He wrote this book to assist him on the road toward healing and for those who care enough to listen. As Blue Andrews says in his preface, stories like his are nothing new. Suicide is a global phenomenon that continues to plague society, and it commonly springs from depression. Even if Andrews’s story is familiar, it is still worth reading Choosing Life because every suicidal person’s circumstances are different. We can all learn something by increasing our awareness and helping those we know and hold dear who may be manifesting symptoms of depression and contemplating suicide. In this case, Andrews managed to figure himself out after making a careful assessment of his choices and decisions. He decided that he wanted to continue living, and his tale proves that we can help those who have a predisposition toward suicide. Andrews didn’t allow his life to end or fall apart because of things that were beyond his control. That is enough to inspire anyone to read about his triumph over torment. - Vincent Dublado

Blue Andrews just wanted to be accepted and live a normal life but that wasn't on the cards. … Choosing Life chronicles his spiral and ongoing resurrection. Choosing Life is an alcoholic's guide to escaping alcoholism. Blue Andrews takes extra care when going into the details of his ordeal; he highlights certain low points in his life several times as if he wants you to note how those events influenced him. I found the role his father played in the origins of his problem particularly disturbing; no child should go through that. His account is clear and simple enough to follow and the warning signs he itemizes should be a helpful guide for others. I must warn you to keep tissues close when reading this as there are some very emotional sections in the book. This is an emotion-laden book with a thought-provoking message of encouragement to individuals dealing with not just alcohol addiction but any form of addiction. Blue Andrews shows us hope is ever present. - Essien Asian

Choosing Life is a profoundly honest account of author Blue Andrews' experiences with displacement, loss, addiction, depression, suicide and recovery. There is a great deal of courage required to put oneself out there and it is commendable that Andrews has put his story on paper. From a literary standpoint, as someone who does not personally know or know of the author, even having experienced several of the same heartbreaking tragedies, I see Choosing Life as a wonderful legacy piece that future generations of Andrews' family will appreciate. It packages up slices of family history nicely and will also lend itself down the road as we learn more medically about the correlation between depression, alcoholism and genetics. I also think this book will be useful as a case study for professionals, or enjoyed by readers who have an interest in any of the aforementioned topics. Recommended. - Jamie Michele

Pacific Book Review …

The trials and deep distresses experienced by author Blue Andrews are presented to provide inspiration and hope to others who might face similar challenges.

Andrews’ emotive memoir is written in phases and flashbacks, stressing his love of sports and the joys of companionship with his high school buddies, while, in the background, troubles brew. His parents have separated, his abusive father’s image looms despite his absence, his mother is doing her best but yields to cancer, and drinking becomes his favorite pastime; what he thinks of as his greatest accomplishment. He can handle alcohol, he can buy it despite being underage, he can drive while intoxicated, he can drink every day with no negative consequences. He recalls those feelings of his power mixed with the power of booze so vividly that readers will feel them with him. But his mother’s passing when Blue was only seventeen, and the earlier accidental death of a close friend, along with the young man’s early success rapidly turning to failure in the post-college professional years will all combine to tell him something he is finally able to accept – finally because something happens that leaves no doubt: he needs help from others, and he must help himself.

The author has developed this debut work for the guidance and benefit of readers, both those who have confronted these same crucial barriers and those who may, through his recollections, recognize and be able to help someone who is going through them. Andrews constructs his story with admirable verve and expertise, showing readers a seemingly blithe, bold, intelligent young man, happily married and well employed, as he gradually falls deeper into a pit of depression and self-destruction. All the episodes in this account have the ring of hard truth, from wild drunken parties and barroom jaunts in strange towns, to the anguish of a teen watching his beloved mother fade from life, to the pride of career successes contrasted with self-hatred when those professional aspirations plummet. The author will emerge on the other side as wiser, more truly settled and competent, with the help of fellow sufferers, the support of a stalwart spouse and family, and with his own determination to survive.

In short, Andrews has devised his personal story well described in the book’s title and subtitle. His work should be noted and utilized by recovery groups and by individuals seeking a map through the tough road out of addiction and mental illness, upwards to sustainable healing.

San Francisco Book Review …

Choosing Life by Blue Andrews is a memoir that describes in detail the struggles Blue has gone through in his life. In his preface, he clearly states that he wrote the book for himself to help in his recovery and growth, and he published the book for someone who is like him or someone who cares about someone like him. Blue wrote his book as a method of therapy but realized that it could also help others to realize that they are not alone. The emotional struggles that Blue endured are real and, for many, would be life-ending. For Blue, however, getting a second chance at life was in the cards.

I really liked how the book was organized into two parts: Part I-Down and Part II-Up. Within these parts, Part I addresses everything that took Blue downhill, from the passing of his good friends and mother to drinking to learning that he was very depressed. Part II tells the reader the different steps Blue was able to take in order to make the decision to choose life.

Reading this book, it’s easy to understand how Blue ended up being depressed. His parents were only eighteen and nineteen when they became pregnant with Blue, and his father was abusive. It was so painful to see Blue’s mother go through cancer treatments while trying to raise Blue and his brother. At a certain point, Blue was raising his teenage self. His competitive spirit did not help because he wanted to be good at something and realized early on that he was good at drinking. Grades dropped, and Blue stopped playing sports. It was only downhill from there. I often felt so sad for Blue while reading this book.

Blue ends up meeting his amazing wife Sandy in Egypt, and they end up having two children (and then twins later on). One would think that Blue was on the up and up. However, feeling like a failure pulls Blue back into a depressive state, and he ends up hitting rock bottom. From there, Blue’s story really picks up. The support that he gets from his wife and close friends and family is immense and truly integral to his healing and recovery. Dealing with grief is a big step. I kept thinking to myself how much of a saint his wife must be. What an amazing woman to stick by Blue’s side through all of it.

This book is beautifully written, and I know that it will help others who are struggling with their inner demons. I recommend it to adults of all ages who are either experiencing hardship or know someone who is. Inspiring, honest, and uplifting, Choosing Life is a wonderful book.

BookLife …

Andrews’s riveting debut lays bare his painful journey through depression, alcoholism, and attempted suicide, culminating in his inspiring path to recovery. He relates his early encounters with alcohol and the profound loss of a cherished friend in high school, alongside his mother’s cancer diagnosis and eventual death that leaves the family reeling—and forces Andrews to move in with a father he barely knows. Despite successfully finishing school and entering college, his experience with loss is just beginning: before long, he loses a close friend to cancer, followed by that friend’s mother a few years later.

More than just a life story, this powerful memoir—divided into two sections, first detailing Andrews’s decline, followed by his recovery—reveals the factors that often contribute to depression and alcoholism, highlighting the complexities involved and emphasizing there is no one-size-fits-all approach to recovery. Andrews reiterates that there were few “ah-ha” moments during his journey, characterizing it instead as a road full of minor setbacks and bad days, while he was “trying to function with the weight of a knight’s armor draped on me at all times.” He encourages readers to view recovery as a marathon, not a sprint, debunking the myths of quick fixes and easy answers in favor of commitment, hard work, and uncompromising honesty.

Readers will find plenty of inspiration here, as Andrews unflinchingly shares his darkest moments—including a suicide attempt that should come with a trigger warning. He interjects teaching points as well, such as offering the reframe “having alcoholism” versus being labeled an alcoholic, stating “It is something I have, not who or what I am.” Perhaps most uplifting is his rediscovery of the beauty in life’s simple moments, whether that’s celebrating unburnt toast or enjoying an easy meal with his kids, as he wisely advises “Gratitude is an excellent barometer for wellness.”

Takeaway: A riveting account of triumph over depression and alcoholism.

BookTrib…

There’s a word I was looking for that, unless I missed it, does not appear in Blue Andrews’ gripping memoir, Choosing Life: One Man’s Journey Through Alcoholism and Depression to Wellness and Self-Discovery. That word is courage. Probably because it’s not a word a writer would necessarily bestow on himself, especially in the context of recounting blow by painful blow, drink by debilitating drink, the nightmarish grief, depression and eventual suicide attempt that put his life literally on the brink. Andrews doesn’t say it, but it’s courage on display here — the courage to tell a brutal story about a life self-destructing day by day, hitting the lowest of lows and then having the courage to, as the book’s title suggests, choose life by undergoing a long and arduous recovery process.

“I may or may not get one bit of recognition from sharing what I’d completed. But it felt like the right thing for me to do … Maybe I could help someone else out along the way,” Andrews writes. “Sharing my own vulnerabilities allows others to open up with their own. They can go through the same discoveries I do.”

Drowning in Grief - As might seem more commonplace than unusual in circumstances like these, Andrews appeared to have it all — a decent upbringing, a circle of close friends, popularity, perhaps from being a star athlete, and a promising future. He parlayed that into a career, solid jobs and a beautiful family with wife and kids. Andrews also was a star at something else: he was a world-class drinker, which started out as a way to bond and socialize but eventually became the root of his problems. The drinking was elevated by the great and sudden loss Andrews experienced that took its toll — his father’s non-presence, the early deaths of two special friends and shortly after the death of his mother. “I couldn’t address the grief, so I began drowning in it.”

Andrews has a wonderful writing touch, able to communicate clearly and convincingly every minute detail of his emotions and actions that led to destruction. One can feel the pain but also the therapeutic effect of the narrative. It got to the point where Andrews was seeing a world through his unique and perhaps distorted lens: “I felt like a ghost. As if no one could see me, my body nonexistent, thinking someone could just brush my shoulder and not feel a thing. People were talking through me, not to me … In my head I was already gone.”

Coming Up for Air - Yet this is a book of hope. It is a book of self-discovery and coming to terms with a condition that many cannot overcome. It is deftly and beautifully delivered. Andrews chose life. And he is here to tell about how he made that choice and what he did about it — in the hope that maybe he can help other troubled souls have the courage to do the same.

Listen to this man now: “I find myself at the most peace when I walk around the house in the middle of the night, peek in on all four kids, stare at them asleep with their heads on a pillow and covers placed just right. If the covers are piled too high, I will lightly creep closer to see their faces. Then I make it back to my room and crawl into bed. Before laying my head down, I rest on an elbow, staring at my wife. I put my hand gently on her head, just for a moment, so softly not to wake her, and smile.”

It’s a beautiful image. And a beautiful outcome. About a man who had the courage to choose life.

IndieReader…

Despite appearing to have it all, author Blue Andrews struggled with inner turmoil and ultimately attempted suicide. In a moment of desperation, he attempted to take his own life, waking up in a hospital psych ward with the physical evidence of his turmoil etched onto his skin. Ultimately Andrews chose to fight for his life, to strive for health and happiness. CHOOSING LIFE (One man’s journey through alcoholism and depression to wellness and self-discovery) is the powerful tale of the author’s journey towards healing, contentment, and self-discovery. He bares his soul, sharing what it’s like to feel lost even when surrounded by love and opportunity. And through his personal anecdotes, he offers a beacon of hope and guidance for others struggling with similar challenges.

In sharing his story, Andrews doesn’t shy away from discussing difficult or painful experiences, from the bleak circumstances leading to his suicide attempt to his struggle to maintain sobriety despite the crushing weight of depression. In some ways, the most difficult parts of this process to read are not the most painful but the most tedious—the succession of AA meetings, counseling sessions, and the slow, steady work of restructuring one’s life. Andrews relates it all with straightforward honesty, and the result is a raw, real, and relatable book that will stay with readers long after they have finished reading. One of the most striking themes in Andrews’ memoir is the importance of choice in shaping our lives. Throughout CHOOSING LIFE, Andrews grapples with difficult decisions and the consequences of those choices, ultimately realizing that we have the power to shape our destiny. It’s a particularly resonant theme in today’s world, where we are continually told that our circumstances are beyond our control. Andrews’s story is a powerful reminder that we have agency in our own lives and the ability to create the future we want.

Andrews’s prose is fluid and engaging, with a strong narrative voice that carries the reader through the story. The syntax and structure of the book are well-crafted, allowing for an easy and enjoyable reading experience. And his use of symbolism and imagery throughout the memoir—the recurring motif of the ocean and its tides—serves as a powerful metaphor for the ebb and flow of Andrews’ journey, and adds an extra layer of depth to his narrative.

Recommended for readers grappling with self-acceptance and mental health issues, Andrews’ CHOOSING LIFE is a powerful and inspiring memoir that will leave a lasting impression with its timeless, universal themes of choice, self-discovery, and resilience.