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Big Vape Paperback – June 7, 2022
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“Fast-paced and impressively researched, this detailed account sings.”
―Publishers Weekly, starred review
A Publishers Weekly Top Ten Book of the Summer (2021)
A propulsive, eye-opening work of reporting, chronicling the rise of Juul and the birth of a new addiction
It began with a smoke break. James Monsees and Adam Bowen were two ambitious graduate students at Stanford, and in between puffs after class they dreamed of a way to quit smoking. Their solution became the Juul, a sleek, modern device that could vaporize nicotine into a conveniently potent dosage. The company they built around that device, Juul Labs, would go on to become a $38 billion dollar company and draw blame for addicting a whole new generation of underage tobacco users.
Time magazine reporter Jamie Ducharme follows Monsees and Bowen as they create Juul and, in the process, go from public health visionaries and Silicon Valley wunderkinds to two of the most controversial businessmen in the country.
With rigorous reporting and clear-eyed prose that reads like a nonfiction thriller, Big Vape uses the dramatic rise of Juul to tell a larger story of big business, Big Tobacco, and the high cost of a product that was too good to be true.
- Print length336 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHolt Paperbacks
- Publication dateJune 7, 2022
- Dimensions5.7 x 0.84 x 8.8 inches
- ISBN-101250838975
- ISBN-13978-1250838971
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Ducharme shines a light on the company's exceptional rise in this un-put-downable saga."
―Newsweek
“Ducharme provides a balanced, methodical account of how an addictive new smoking product with unknown health hazards became ubiquitous in American high schools.”
―Washington Post
"Fair and well researched...Ducharme zooms in squarely on the inner workings of Juul...willing to accept that we may have, partially, panicked...[a] nuanced assessment."
―The New Republic
"It’s a whirlwind ride to the top...a story of unexpectedly high drama...for those wondering how a smoking cessation product could seize so much public attention, Big Vape holds some fascinating answers."
―Boston Magazine
“[A] riveting exposé…this well-rounded journalistic narrative is consistently informative and alarming. Intensive, exemplary reportage on a controversial industry cloaked in scandal.”
―Kirkus (starred review)
"Journalist Ducharme charts the meteoric rise, subsequent missteps, and resulting misfortunes of e-cigarette company Juul in her brisk and thorough debut. Juul started as a graduate design project in 2005 by cofounders James Monsees and Adam Bowen; their aim was 'to change what it meant to consume nicotine.'....Ducharme presents an evenhanded retelling of the company’s scandals up to the point, in 2020, when Monsees and Bowen left."
―Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Big Vape is a dazzling story that crackles with the energy of a nicotine buzz, mixing tales of groundbreaking innovation with those of corporate greed and government dysfunction. More than anything, this is a story about American capitalism today, and it explains why a new generation is hooked on the most addictive of drugs. This is a landmark piece of investigative reporting."
―Christopher Leonard, author of the New York Times bestseller Kochland
"Big Vape is more than just brilliantly reported and elegantly written. It is also a richly populated book―filled not just with human characters, but with matters of science, finance, invention, ambition, ethics, hubris and blazing ingenuity. Even the cunning little product at the center of the story―the Juul itself―becomes a sort of character in Jamie Ducharme’s hands. Ducharme brings the best skills of journalist and lyricist to tell an exceedingly important story―and to tell it irresistibly."
―Jeffrey Kluger, bestselling co-author of Apollo 13 and author of Apollo 8
"The rise and fall of Juul is an instructive tale, and Jamie Ducharme does an excellent job detailing how one bad decision after another led the company astray in this deft rendition of grand start-up dreams gone up in smoke."
―Reeves Wiedeman, author of Billion Dollar Loser
"Combining meticulous research with gripping storytelling, this is a must-read with important lessons for policymakers, CEOs, and public health professionals alike. As a physician, I witnessed firsthand the harmful impact of vaping on young people. Big Vape explains how this happened."
―Leana Wen, M.D. author of Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health
"Big Vape illuminates the direct threat to life when sharp, well-funded minds can harness addiction to pursue profit over health. As with the Theranos saga, Ducharme's urgent story shows that medical safety is the last place that venture capitalists should be aiming their wrecking balls.”
―Joseph Menn, author of All the Rave: The Rise and Fall of Shawn Fanning's Napster and co-author of The People vs. Big Tobacco
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Holt Paperbacks (June 7, 2022)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 336 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1250838975
- ISBN-13 : 978-1250838971
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.7 x 0.84 x 8.8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,201,267 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #204 in Business Infrastructure
- #861 in Sociological Study of Medicine
- #1,836 in Company Business Profiles (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
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As a journalist, the author is experienced at conveying information concisely, and the narrative moves along quickly. I don't read a lot of non-fiction books, but I found this one had characters, missteps and bad decisions right out of a novel. It was an entertaining and informative read! If you are a parent, you should read this book to know what vaping is all about. If you are involved in a business, this book is a fascinating demonstration on how inexperience, lack of long-range planning and some spectacularly poor decisions can drive a company right off the rails. I had the opportunity to read an advance reader's edition and highly recommend Big Vape!
Rating - 4 out of 5 stars
Narration Rating - 5 out of 5 stars
I was a little disappointed about this book. All because of an assumption made by me. When I read the title I thought it was going to about all different types of vaping not just about the rise and fall of Juul. As a former vaper myself I thought it would be a good look into all aspects of vaping but I quickly realized it was all about Juul which I have never used.
With that being said this was a very interesting book. I learned a lot about the technology of Juul and the consequences of vaping. I also learned some interesting things about Juul and how their company rose and fell quite rapidly. Even to the point that most of the major players are not even involved with the company anymore. Also that they struggled with the same things I struggled with when I was vaping.
I loved the narrator. He made what could have been a very boring book very interesting. With a quick tempo (I always listen to review books at 1x speed.) Also he was very upbeat through the whole thing.
All in all I would strongly recommend this book to people who have considered vaping, teens, and parents that may have found out their child is vaping. I wish I would have read/listened to it before I started vaping that is for sure.
Reviewers Note - I vaped for years to try to quit smoking. I never did quit smoking and now have lung damage as a result of vaping. I do not of some of the more severe side effects that were described in the book but I now have to have a rescue inhaler on me at all times and am taking the same daily drug that COPD patients have to take. Even though I don’t have COPD. I am back to smoking regular cigarettes and some of the damage has reversed. I don’t cough as much and my chest does not constantly hurt. Some may ask why I didn’t just quit both. I will say this, nicotine is very addictive. I was hooked from my very first cigarette and now smoke about a pack a day. It is not easy to quit but I have several times for long periods of time and after listening to this book will be taking another try at it in the near future.
by Lauren Etter, which is far better: fuller descriptions of the main players, excellent coverage of the chemical formulation of nicotine-salts that allowed JUUL to amplify the nicotine content of its pods without providing a throat-burning sensation, better analysis of JUUL's ad campaigns. I wish I had read the Devil's Playbook first and had skipped Big Vape.
Top reviews from other countries
I'm delighted that JUUL never really took-off in the UK. Thank God we have Public Health England and organizations like the RCP. I've been vaping for well over 6 years and haven't touched a cigarette since that first vape.