Guns N' Roses was quickly heralded as the greatest rock n roll band on the planet. During the late 80’s and 90’s the hedonistic rock gods Axl, Slash, Izzy, Steven and Duff scored sold out stadium concerts on the way to multi-platinum success. Appetite for Destruction still stands as the biggest selling debut album in rock history. During it all, original drummer Steven Adler stole hearts and headlines with his insane antics. But Steven was soon crippled by a tragic heroin addiction that led to him to being kicked out of the band he helped found. 

At the center of this maelstrom stood Steven’s mother, Deanna Adler, the GNR-proclaimed “first fan” of the group. Deanna was there at the beginning in 1983, when school chums Steven and Slash were building their street cred on the Sunset Strip. Deanna witnessed it all but has never told her incredible story, until now.

In honest, direct prose, Deanna gives an unflinching account of her son Steven’s drug fueled ascent to becoming the co-founder of Guns N’ Roses, and his subsequent fall to drugs and alcohol. In one of the most brutally raw, revealing books written on substance abuse, Deanna delivers a powerful, inspirational message of hope to anyone dealing with opioid addiction.

Excerpt from Sweet Child of Mine:

My darkest fears exploded when I found Steven in the center of the bathroom floor, naked, his body bent at an impossible angle. He was soaked in a pool of blood and mucus. His face was smashed beyond recognition, his mouth and chin looked completely caved in. 

I reached for my son and almost slipped on some pebbles strewn across the tile. Then I realized they were Steven’s teeth. I dropped to my knees, crying hysterically.

I heard a groan, then… “ma.”