Confessions of an English Opium-Eater

Confessions of an English Opium-Eater was an autobiographical work by Thomas De Quincey. Originally published anonymously, it later became the work by which everything else he wrote would be judged, and found wanting. De Quincey writes about his addiction (though they didn't call it that back in the 1800s) to laudanum (opium and alcohol), and the effect it had on his life and relationships. It remains one of the best books ever written about addiction.