The Book That Started It All: The Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous Author: Anonymous | Language: English | ISBN:
159285947X | Format: PDF
The Book That Started It All: The Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous Description
- Hardcover: 248 pages
- Publisher: Hazelden; Commemorative edition (September 1, 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 159285947X
- ISBN-13: 978-1592859474
- Product Dimensions: 13.8 x 11.5 x 0.9 inches
- Shipping Weight: 5.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Bill W. wrote most of the BB between May 1938 and January of 1939, discussing drafts of the work in progress at the Clinton Street meeting and sending them to Dr. Bob for review by the Akron group. The feedback from Akron was consistently positive. But in NY, a heated debate broke out. According to Bill, three points of view emerged: "conservatives" who argued for an explicitly Christian text, "liberals" who didn't object to using "God" but wanted a spiritual rather than a religious document, and the "radical left-wing" who wanted to delete "God" from the book entirely and produce a work of psychology.
Unable to agree among themselves, the three factions eventually named Bill the final arbiter of the book's content. An initial draft of the manuscript was completed by February. Concerned that the book be widely acceptable, some 400 mimeograph or multilith copies were sent out for comment. As these were returned, it became evident that the book had been well received in all quarters, the medical and religious professions included.
Still, the dispute in NY went on unabated. The minority of "radicals" there had always seen the book as an opportunity to educate the "benighted Akronites" and they pressed their effort to edit God out. In this they had an ally in the person of a Dr. Howard, a NJ psychiatrist whose returned mimeograph was filled with edits deleting "God" and inserting other terms.
From the start, Bill had recognized the two horns of the dilemma facing the book. "If you labeled it a strictly Christian book" all kinds of problems would arise and many alcoholics would stay away, while if "we make a psychological job of it nobody would get well from it.
The Book That Started It All: The Original Working Manuscript of Alcoholics Anonymous Preview
Link
Please Wait...