Summary
Fall 1963
In the opening chapter of The Basketball Diaries, young Carroll, merely thirteen, embarks on an audacious adventure. Armed with a falsified birth certificate from his crafty coach, Lefty, he infiltrates a basketball league meant for those twelve and under. Carroll and his band of friends indulge in reckless escapades, inhaling cleaning fluids to achieve a heady high, pilfering purses, and even robbing another basketball team. Halloween turns chaotic as they pelt neighborhood girls with socks bulging with flour, drunkenly shattering windows with stones in their frenzy. Lefty's watchful eye catches some players sniffing glue, but Carroll cunningly discards his stash. As Carroll's family moves to a new apartment perched at the tip of Manhattan, he and his friends drown in alcohol, culminating in one unfortunate member needing his stomach pumped.
Winter 1964
Carroll, despite his non-Catholic upbringing, is coerced into confessing at his new Catholic school. The grim specter of mortality brushes close as he attends the funeral of a friend who tragically perishes in a glue-sniffing mishap. Although he scores impressively on an exam, he faces reprimand for his lackadaisical effort. Delving into the world of narcotics, he recounts his initial flirtation with heroin, naively believing it to be non-addictive. The thrill of theft entices him to swipe clothes from a department store, while he shares a marijuana joint with an older neighborhood acquaintance. Within the confines of his school, scandal brews as a priest, caught spanking a student's naked posterior, is ousted following accusations of inappropriate conduct. Carroll’s mother discovers and promptly destroys his stash of marijuana.
Spring & Summer 1964
Carroll speaks of the mysterious caves nestled near his new home, where he retreats to indulge in smoking marijuana. He describes the exhilarating rush of freedom he experiences, naked, on his building's rooftop in the stillness of the night. A wild party erupts in the woods with friends, culminating in daring leaps off a cliff into the Harlem River and theft of basketballs from the park house. Unfortunately, his drug use costs him his job at Yankee Stadium. Unabashedly, Carroll and his friends pilfer liquor intended for an American Legion gathering, fueling more reckless adventures, including a sexual liaison at a friend’s place.
Fall 1964
Carroll grapples with the stringent decorum of his new private school, where he attends thanks to a basketball scholarship. Yet, his prowess on the court and charisma leave a mark on his peers. A routine gym class excursion to Central Park nearly sees him caught in the act of smoking marijuana. He cynically observes the school's insincere Thanksgiving fast meant to symbolize empathy for the hungry. His interactions take a political turn with a sexual encounter involving a communist girl.
Winter 1965
During a basketball game, Carroll inadvertently finds himself exposed, adding to his list of misadventures. He begins frequenting Headquarters, an apartment bustling with local drug enthusiasts. Codeine cough syrup becomes his new means of escapism. Dark fantasies plague him, including one of wielding a machine gun in the classroom. A Communist Party meeting fails to impress him, and his delinquency continues with theft from the wrestling team. His drug use, shared with teammates, significantly derails their game performance.
Spring 1965
Carroll encounters a surprising figure: a transvestite who picks him up. He recounts tales of Bobby Blake, a kleptomaniac friend, who, while high, brazenly breaks into an ice cream parlor. A disheartening letter from his principal lands in his mother’s hands, warning of his poor grades and behavioral issues. Blake’s antics persist as he, high once again, breaks into a clothes store, distributing garments to onlookers, including...
(This entire section contains 1425 words.)
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the police, who promptly arrest him. Carroll’s rebellious streak continues as he and a friend ditch class to indulge in heroin, narrowly evading police capture. A conversation with a young girl veers into antiwar rhetoric.
Summer 1965
Carroll delves into the bizarre realm of hustling homosexuals for money, noting the recent oddities of his escapades. A grim discovery shocks him and his friends—a half-dead, naked woman who has attempted suicide by jumping from a window. The notorious bathroom at Grand Central Terminal emerges as a sordid hub where men gather, indulging in voyeurism and masturbation. Recollections surface of seeing naked transvestites for the first time at nine. The looming threat of atomic war haunts him. A narcotic-fueled escapade ends with him and friends stealing food from a restaurant. Paranoia grips him on a train journey, convinced fellow passengers plot to eject him. Suffering from gonorrhea, he seeks clandestine medical help in Harlem, acknowledging his spiraling heroin addiction with a faint resolve to regain control, particularly for his schooling and basketball aspirations.
Fall 1965
Growing up under the perpetual shadow of war, Carroll's life as a "war baby" is steeped in nuclear paranoia. Escaping into the drug-drenched haven of Headquarters becomes his refuge from political tumult. Corruption runs deep as narcotics officers pocket dealers’ drugs for personal gain. An intense trip on LSD propels him into a hallucinogenic experience, coinciding with a police raid at Headquarters following a noise complaint. More acid, an eclipse of the moon, and the chaos of an electrical blackout weave a tapestry of surreal experiences. Amidst his drug-induced haze, romantic entanglements with a wealthy girlfriend unfold. He highlights the desperation of heroin addiction, where addicts gamble with dirty needles to satisfy their urges. Familial tensions simmer, his parents' attempts to drag him into arguments and political debates wear thin. He grows disenchanted with the impotence of peace marches.
Winter 1966
Once again, Carroll finds himself lost in the macabre musings of a classroom-shooting daydream. Although his dread of nuclear annihilation has somewhat diminished, paranoia still clings to him like a shadow. He recounts a peculiar encounter during the National High School All-Star Basketball Game, where he was inappropriately touched by Benny Greenbaum, a college scout with questionable intentions. Carroll passionately delves into his love for writing about the vibrant tapestry of New York City. However, the needle calls to him, and his ability to focus on his writing is slipping away like sand through fingers. His addiction is taking its toll not only on his mind but also on his prowess on the basketball court.
He narrates the tale of an affair with an older woman, a wealthy divorcee who funds his narcotic indulgences, but demands unsettling sexual deeds in return. Meanwhile, he hears of a fellow addict, now locked away for two long years. Carroll finds himself duped by a deceitful drug dealer yet again, but when he procures heroin from a new source, he discovers a twisted appreciation for the nausea that accompanies its use. The justice system catches up with him, and he learns that an old friend has been imprisoned for a drug-fueled murder. Eventually, Carroll himself is sent to Riker’s Island Juvenile Reformatory, serving a three-month sentence for heroin possession.
Spring & Summer 1966
Thanks to his headmaster's intervention, Carroll's stint at Riker's is cut short, reducing his stay to just one month. However, the siren song of heroin is irresistible, and he quickly succumbs to another injection offered by a friend. A terrifying acid trip convinces him to stick with heroin, his substance of choice. With most heroin vendors behind bars, he turns to methadone, while acknowledging his lack of control over his addiction. Carroll turns to hustling, targeting a gay man, and categorizes the various breeds of junkies. He and his friends conspire to steal a Porsche, only to find their plans thwarted when the car is towed before they can find a buyer.
Undeterred, the duo pilfer raffle books from the American Legion to sell them door to door. During this shady venture, they encounter an older woman who seduces them. The money they earn funds a small purchase of cocaine. Emboldened by their antics, Carroll and a companion decide to experiment with peyote, plunging into another hallucinogenic journey.
Desperate to escape the clutch of heroin, Carroll attempts an abrupt withdrawal, meticulously documenting the torment of his symptoms. Yet, his resolve falters, and he steals heroin from an acquaintance, succumbing once more to the ritual of the syringe. A fleeting visit to a drug-therapy session offers little solace before he relapses. In a candid conversation with a fellow addict also struggling to break free, they both acknowledge their battles and setbacks. Carroll and a friend make their way to New York's bustling Chinatown on a quest for more heroin.
In the closing chapter of his diary, Carroll emerges from a haze of a four-day high, yearning for a fresh start and a body cleansed of its poisons.
