CAL – Three Views of Al-Anon (Item # P-15)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Ever since this pamphlet first came out in 1970, its original subtitle was: “from the Other Side of the Family” but around 2010, it was updated to be: “Alcoholics Speak to the Family.”  The image of this “white-circle” design pamphlet with this new subtitle is one of the rarest & hardest…

CAL – Alcoholism, a Merry-Go-Round Named Denial (Item # P-3)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. How great would it be to give a talk at an Al-Anon workshop & it goes over so well, they want to turn it into a pamphlet?! 😲 Well that’s what happened in 1968 to one non-member: the former director of the Charlotte Council on Alcoholism.  This pamphlet was published a…

CAL – The Twelve Steps & Traditions (Item # P-17)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Continuing on with my historical jaunt through the pamphlets… 1961 was a major year for Al-Anon.  After being around for 10 years, they finally had their first trial Conference that year & the concept of having Conference Approved material was adopted — yet, at that time, groups were still allowed to…

CAL – Alcoholism, the Family Disease (Item # P-4)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. This pamphlet is another example of outside literature being “grandfathered” in.  A big “Thanks!” goes out to a non-member, Harold Black, & the initial Kentucky & Arizona groups for their contribution to this one.  Per “Many Voices, One Journey” (item # B-31) (pages 58 & 104), an early booklet version was…

CAL – Freedom from Despair (Item # P-6)

Last week I finished the Alateen Newcomer Packet (item #K-18).  (What I learned about all the other items in that packet can be found in previous entries for the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (K-10).)  That means I’m done with all 6 types of packets (whoo-hoo!) & am moving on with other pamphlets.  It seems going back to the beginning…

CAL – Al-Anon Spoken Here (Item # P-53)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. This is the seventh pamphlet in the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (item # K-10) & is the only one marked “Service” on the front (instead of “Recovery”).  I imagine that’s because this pamphlet is also used as outreach literature. 2. This pamphlet addresses 15 common Frequently Asked Questions – especially regarding…

CAL – A Guide for the Family of the Alcoholic (Item # P-7)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. This is the sixth pamphlet in the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (item # K-10) & is one of the few examples of early “outside literature” being grandfathered into the CAL catalog.  It was issued in 1962 & is primarily based on an article by a non-member: the former director of the Charlotte Council…

CAL – Lois Remembers (Item # B-7)

For the books that I’ll read for this blog, I’ll be going in order of “lowest sellers” to “highest sellers” according to what I’ve sold in the past year & a half to District 6 members.  Not sure why “Lois Remembers” is on the bottom of this list…  Maybe because it came out in 1979 &…