PiHKAL

Written by chemist Alexander Shulgin together with his wife, Ann, this memoir follows a couple whose partnership in work and marriage grew around a shared fascination with mind-altering compounds. Alexander describes a long career spent designing new molecules and studying what they do to perception, emotion and thought.

The title, PiHKAL, abbreviates Phenethylamines I Have Known And Loved. The book blends personal narrative with detailed chemistry, including the synthesis routes for the compounds the Shulgins worked on, so it reads as much like a laboratory record as a life story.

Throughout, the authors consider how these experiences shaped their relationship, with the science and the intimacy of their shared life running alongside each other. It will suit adult readers interested in pharmacology, the history of drug research, or the personal side of a scientific career.