The following books will be used throughout the program. We strongly recommend selecting one per quarter to read for the first year.
- Alcoholic Anonymous, also called the AA Big Book (Alcoholics Anonymous)
- Currency of Hope (Debtors Anonymous)
- Sex Addicts Anonymous (Sex Addicts Anonymous)
- Sexaholics Anonymous (Sexaholics Anonymous)
- Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous/The Augustine Fellowship)
- Al-Anon’s Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions (Al-Anon Family Groups)
- Overeaters Anonymous (Overeaters Anonymous)
- Co-Dependents Anonymous (CoDA)
- Narcotics Anonymous (NA World Service Office)
- Big Book: Sharing Recovery Through Gamblers Anonymous (Gamblers Anonymous)
- Recovering Couples Anonymous: A Twelve-Step Program for Couples (Recovering Couples Anonymous)
- Adult Children: Alcoholic / Dysfunctional Families (Adult Children of Alcoholics World Services)
There are also additional key books that teach about the foundations and tools of each core principle. Some are classic books which everyone is encouraged to read. You may even have read some of them, but they are the type of books worth revisiting. One of these will be selected as a core book for the quarter to be read in concert with the fellowship literature you select. If you are already familiar with that book, select one from the other recommended readings.
Among the recommended readings we will list key books on understanding the brain which support the core principle of the quarter. Also included will be critical books in psychotherapy which match the focus of the quarter. Use the following key which will designate the “core book” of the quarter, classic books on recovery, and books on brain science:
* Quarter “Core Book”
** Classic books on recovery
*** Brain science
Principle One Recommended Reading:
- * Dark Night of the Soul: A Guide to Finding Your Way through Life’s Ordeals by Thomas Moore
- ** Bill W.: A Biography of Alcoholics Anonymous Cofounder Bill Wilson, by Francis Hartigan
- **The Lois Wilson Story: When Love Is Not Enough, by William G. Borchert
- ***The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science, by Norman Doidge
- **Getting Better: Inside Alcoholics Anonymous, by Nan Robertson
- The War of Art: Break through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, by Steven Pressfield
- Gentle Path through the Twelve Steps: The Classic Guide for All People in the Process of Recovery, by Patrick Carnes
- A Gentle Path through the Twelve Principles: Living the Values behind the Steps, by Patrick Carnes
- Recovery Zone, Volume I: Making Changes That Last, by Patrick Carnes
