As a 90s girlie I absolutely love reading about pop culture icons from this time period. I loved the narration and would definitely recommend.

This was interesting as I love Maroon 5 and appreciate musicians experiences as they so often intersect with addiction and trauma. I loved the insight into Maroon 5’s beginning but more Ryan’s recovery and would have loved to hear more about his life post-Maroon 5 and post-recovery.

The band maroon 5 has provided a soundtrack for the last twenty years of my life - I remember popping "Songs About Jane" into my CD player on drives home from college and singing every word. now when I hear these songs on the radio, I get such a happy, nostalgic feeling. While I knew their music pretty well, I did not know much about the members of the band - particularly Ryan Dusick, the original drummer. The audiobook is read by Dusick, which I always think adds some depth and emotion to the story. It was so interesting to hear about the formation of the band, iterations of the band's name, and collaborating to write songs. Dusick wrote a lot about his mental health and addiction struggles, which I appreciated. Highly recommend!!

This memoir was so well done and the narration made a lengthy experience worth listening to. They will no doubt be some triggers, but I do wish more Men would be open to sharing their struggles with Mental Health and the disease of addiction. I learned of some new artists and it reminded of so many of my favorites. Despite the subject matter, I think there is something in here for everyone.

#NAMI #INNERCHILD #ADDICTION #SUPPORT #12STEPS #SERVICE #FELLOWTRAVELERS #THERAPY #EMPOWERMENT #NATURE #ExperienceStrengthHope #Sponsor #Anxiety #Depression #CBT #THOUGHTSTOP #OneDayAtATime #Forgiveness #Travel #HardertoBreathe #NetGalley

I like Maroon5 in the way that I’m always happy when a song of theirs comes on but don’t know much about them at all. It was a lot of fun to learn about the band’s beginnings. As the band was hitting it big, Ryan started had to leave the band due to nerve issues and to deal with addiction, and I always find these stories interesting and important.
I found this book so interesting and I am shocked that it’s not bigger than it is. The tone of this book is the only thing that kept it from being 5 ⭐️ for me. Ryan is a therapist now and I feel like a lot of his story was told with a tone that made it seem too polished or like he’d analyzed it so much that it took the reader out of the story and made it a little less propulsive than I thought the content lent to.
The audiobook was read by the author and he did a great job.
I’d definitely recommend this, especially to people who are Maroon5 fans.

Harder to Breathe: A Memoir of Making Maroon 5, Losing It All, and Finding Recovery by Ryan Dusick

Listening Time: 11 Hours, 5 Minutes
Narrator: Ryan Dusick
Publisher: Highbridge Audio
Release Date: February 21, 2023

Nonfiction (Adult), Biographies, Memoirs, Self-Help, Addictions, Music

Ryan Dusick is a founding member of the group Maroon 5. He tells his life story meeting his friends that would join in the band, and his love interests. The band went through several names and members before they became an overnight sensation (more like eleven years). As a drummer, he had a natural talent but realized later that the way he sat and held the sticks was causing him pain in his shoulder. He is honest about his depression and anxiety and the times he sought help.

The book is written with raw emotions. The reader can feel his happiness, but also his pain. His story is not very different from other people dealing with addictions except he was famous. He discusses his relationships with guys from Linkin Park, Sara Bareilles, and Savannah Buffett. This is an excellent example of going for it, getting it, hitting rock bottom, and rising up from the ashes.

I wouldn’t consider myself a huge Maroon 5 fan, although I enjoy their music. That makes it even more remarkable that I found this book so entertaining. The story of the band’s origins and rise to stardom set against the music of the 90s is written in a way that I couldn’t help but want to keep reading. Weave in tidbits about behind-the-scenes trivia, plus Ryan’s own struggles, and I was hooked.

It’s obvious the care with which Ryan wrote the book, working hard to be objective at the same time he’s sharing his own perspective. He seems like a sensitive, thoughtful person who is intent on learning from his past and creating a new future for himself (unlike some of the celeb memoirs I’ve read lately). I wonder if his attempts to be objective, though, put him one step removed from his story, because at times it felt like it was reading a news report rather than a first hand memoir. Some emotion or “showing vs. telling” was missing.

All the same, I’d recommend this book to anyone who loves music, grew up in the 90s, or struggles with mental health/addiction. It’s a light at the end of the tunnel.

"Harder to Breathe" is an insightful book written by one of the members of Maroon 5. Ryan Dusick talks openly about his struggles with mental health and about the early days of the band.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Harder to Breath is an in depth book about the amazing band, Maroon 5. Written by their founding drummer and hugely foundational member, Ryan Dusick. Just a disclaimer, I have been a fan of Maroon 5 since I was a kid and Ryan was my favorite member until he left the band. Ryan takes us through the process of him organically meeting the other founding members of the band as kids, just hanging out and each having a love of music. This background made me love the band even more as they truly worked so hard to get where they are today. It was interesting to listen to the band history through the eyes of Ryan because he was struggling so much with his own health during their rise to fame and was very open and honest about what he went through and how he unfairly blamed the other band members when he was replaced. I think everyone has at one time been somewhere that they were unfairly removed from something or someone they loved due to circumstances out of their control. I found myself empathizing with Ryan at different parts of his journey and at the end just being so proud of the work he has done on himself and the place he is today. He is a great testimony that we all go through hard times but you will end up where you are supposed to in the end. He said something that has stuck with me in this book “To get through anxiety, you have to go through it” which means you have to actually confront the issues and go through the work to make yourself better. The book was narrated by Ryan and he did a great job and had a pleasing voice to listen to.

I enjoyed this novel a lot. I like a good musician memoir. This focuses do much on the mental turmoil Ryan has gone threw. I love the progress towards normalizing he is doing with mental illness.

I remember being a teenager and attending a Maroon 5 concert at the local college. They were just starting to be a big name and we just knew they had something special. Being able to reconnect my memories to the story told in this book was wonderful. I enjoyed learning about their humble beginnings as a bunch of nutty teens looking to have some fun. The rollercoaster that Ryan went through until his moment of stepping away seemed difficult. I commend him for making it out with so much growth as a person.

I would have preferred more about Ryan’s life post Maroon 5. His struggles through sobriety and lessons learned were the most inspiring parts of this book. Overall, if you’re a fan, give this one a listen!

Harder to Breathe by Ryan Dusick was read by the author. I just finished listening to this book and was greatly impressed with Dusick's story. I am familiar with the songs of Maroon 5, but didn't know anything about the band. The story of Ryan's life and his love of music was key to the story, so the fact that it's told in his own words makes it so much more interesting. The reader learns of how these 5 musicians came together to form a band, and how the dynamics of that band changed as fame developed. I knew at the beginning that the book was about Mr. Dusick's struggle with OCD, and addiction, but his story is very different than so many. He really was not interested in drugs and alcohol and did little experimentation until the band became very famous, was touring the world, and his OCD and anxiety became out of control., Coupled with his physical struggles with a type of bursitis that developed because he was a self taught drummer who had developed a poor style of drumming that continued to damage his nerves and tendons., he actually turned to drugs after being prescribed a multitude of various drugs to treat his malady. Combined with depression due to his inability to continue touring with the band, things quickly got out of control. This is a very impressive story of one man's struggle and eventual triumph at turning his life around, and finding meaning for himself in a whole new direction. I highly recommend this book to anyone struggling with life issues, or an interest in Maroon 5. I'd like to thank RB Media and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a free digital copy in exchange for my honest rating and review.

This book was so interesting. It was fun to hear about the early high school days of the members of Maroon 5 and see how they grew into the people they are today. I would’ve liked to know more about Ryan’s life post Maroon 5, but it’s inspiring to hear he’s doing as well as he is! I’m rooting for him!!

Harder to Breathe is a memoir written by Ryan Dusick, the original drummer of the pop band Maroon 5. The story covers a number of decades beginning with a young boy and his friends that were so inspired by music and dreamt of making it big and continues on with a behind-the-scenes look at their seemingly rapid (though of course there was a lot of years and hard work leading up to it) rise to international stardom. We then hear about Ryan’s struggles to cope when a key component of his identity, the ability to play drums, is taken away from him.

I listened to an audio version of this book that was narrated by the author. This is my preferred way to “read” memoirs as I feel hearing the author verbalize their own experience adds that extra special something to the experience. I was impressed by Ryan’s narration and it was very easy to listen to - like listening to an honest and down to earth friend having a chat.

Ryan’s memoir covers some difficult topics, from anxiety and depression to substance abuse. I appreciated the candour at which these important mental health issues were discussed. Ryan also was very humble and honest about his own failings and mistakes along the way. I definitely got an appreciation for the desperate downward spiral that Ryan’s life took after he lost his dream and what he felt was the most important part of his identity.

I went into listening to this memoir with only a small knowledge of Maroon 5. I knew a few of their hits but not much more. It was interesting to learn more about the creative process involved in creating an album and the realities of life on the road during the long stretches of touring.

I’m happy that I listened to this memoir. It was inspiring and it also gave me a new appreciation for the art of drumming!