Human History on Drugs

Did you know that Alexander the Great was a sloppy drunk, William Shakespeare was a stoner and George Washington drank a spoonful of opium every night to staunch the pain from his fake teeth? Or how about the fact that China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, ingested liquid mercury in an (ironic) attempt to live forever, or that Alexander Shulgin, inventor of no fewer than 230 new psychedelic drugs, was an employee of the DEA? In 'Human History on Drugs', Sam Kelly sheds light on some truly shocking aspects of the historical characters we only thought we knew.