Must-Read: Dangerous When Wet

An overbearing mother and her gay son -- this dynamic has spawned many a memoir. However, not every mother is the champagne-swilling Texas-backwater belle Mama Jean. And not every son can capture such a complex relationship with as much verve as Jamie Brickhouse in his memoir, Dangerous When Wet(St. Martin's Press, $26).

"A drink in one hand, a cigarette in the other, and my head thrown back in laughter was my idea of heaven," he says of his 5-year-old self. But finding balance as a big-city adult proved harder than expected. Brickhouse's blunt account of addiction and recovery is laced with twisted humor, a testament to the long shadow his mama cast over his life. That same shadow will be following you around days after you finish this book.