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David Sheff follows William Zinsser's advice on writing a memoir. Zinsser's most crucial lesson is, "Be yourself and your readers will follow you anywhere. Try to commit an act of writing and your readers will jump overboard to get away. Your product is you. The crucial transaction in memoir and personal history is the transaction between you and your remembered experiences and emotions." (Zinsser, How to Write a Memoir) This relates to Beautiful Boy, in which David Sheff is overcome by intense grief for his son struggling with addiction. He puts his frustration and energy into writing a book. Which helps him reflect on what he's experienced and learned through the emotional rollercoaster. Sheff's reporting his reactions and thoughts during this emotionful time. This allows for a candid portrayal of the stages of his life. Including beautiful moments as well as his lowest points.

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As young Nic departs for his mother's house for the summer, he says, "Everything." His dad replies, "Everything." David and Nic are closer than most fathers and sons. They surfed, laughed, and loved each other more than anything. Throughout Nic's addiction, his dad would never give up on him. Nic adored his stepmom Karen and his younger siblings. These relationships would give Nick the strength to get clean.
David became addicted to his son's addiction. His focus on Nic resulted in a strained relationship with his wife and children. The phone symbolizes David's lack of control over Nic, "The phone, when it rings, brings on the same state of panic. I am always worried that there is news of another crisis. Or it’s Nic, and I don’t know if he will be sane or high. Or it won’t be him, and I’ll be disappointed. My body tenses up."(Sheff 293) With every phone call, David feels a wave of anxiety.David is prepared to surrender everything to get Nic the help he needs. Nic is unknowingly putting his father through terrible pain.
Nic has a devoted family to support him while battling his addiction. Whether he was in rehab or suffering withdrawal his family was always there for him. David introduced Karen into Nic's life, and they instantly bonded over jokes. After Nic holds Daisy in his arms for the first time, "I never thought I would have a family like this."(Sheff 64) Nic adores his younger siblings from the second they were born. His addiction greatly impacts the whole family. For Jasper and Daisy, they were worried about their big brother, friend, and favorite playmate.
While Nic was battling addiction he would always have his family's love and support. Nic must dispute the damage his behavior has caused his father and his family, whom he lied to and stole from.

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David Sheff's work is heartbreaking; but beautiful. The reader grows up alongside Nic and sees him flourish. Then abruptly feels his father's distress when he is missing. After David realized he had already lost Nic, “I would miss having Nic in my life. I would miss his funny phone messages and his humor, the stories, our talks, our walks, watching movies with him, dinners together, and the transcendent feeling between us that is love. I would miss all of it. I miss it now. And here it sinks in: I don't have it now. I have not had it whenever Nic has been on drugs. Nic is absent, only his shell remains. I have been afraid - terrified - to lose Nic, but I have lost him.” (Sheff 296) His writing unfolds truth and healing. Sheff exposes powerful raw emotions of love, grief, fear, power, and surrender. Throughout the lows of Nic's addiction, his father always remains optimistic. David and Nic Sheff's story has provided support to millions of parents and loved ones who thought they were making this journey alone

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David witnesses his considerate, bright, witty, and confident son transform under the control of Methamphetamines. It had all started when Nic was 11-years-old and smoked marijuana for the first time. It comforted him at a time when he felt awkward in his own skin. His desire for drugs escalated. His dad would go through unimaginable emotions while not being able to help his dying son. He lays awake at night, relentlessly studies meth, attempts to put Nic through rehab multiple times, and neglects his own life.
David's most frightening realization was how unrecognizable Nic had become. After Karen and David discover Nic had broken into their home," Each time Karen or I discover another violation, we are hit anew by a combination of sadness and fury. How could he do this?"(Sheff 222)  Though Nic loves his family, when he is relapsing, he repeatedly hurts them.They feel violated and frightened their son robbed them.  As David feels as he is starting to lose Nic, “How can both Nics, the loving and considerate and generous one, and the self-obsessed and self-destructive one, be the same person?” (Sheff 96) Nic's loveable nature faded, and all his dad hopes is that he will find it again.
David attended AA meetings for support and an ounce of hope. He sat in a circle of people with heavy eyes and heartbreaking stories, "Al-Anon gatherings are no cure, but once again it's comforting, though always so sad hearing other's stories."(Sheff 209) He found that everyone's stories are different yet so similar. He found relief in sharing his anguish out loud.
The impact of Nic's absence was torturous on his father. He became restless waiting for a phone call or any sign he is alive," Nic is gone a week. Then another. Interminable days and nights. I try to keep busy. I try to work."(Sheff 219) Writing this memoir David was trying to make sense of it all, and most importantly he was trying to help others. He concluded that, "You didn't cause it, you can't control it, you can't cure it."(Sheff 275) Harshly blaming himself and his divorce wouldn't help anyone. He had to reflect and accept that he can't control Nic.
David wrote about his stages of self-blame, grief, rage, and tension. He reconnected with his precious wife and children to remind him what is good in his life. Group meetings helped him realize he is not alone. He recognized he did everything he could do for Nic, and the rest is up to him.

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Nic faced tremendous obstacles that may have amounted to his struggle with addiction. His parent's divorce and the influences around him would play a role in causing his self-sabotaging behavior.
When Nic was three years old his parents had an ugly divorce that ended up in court. David got full custody, and Nic would live with his mom during the holidays and for the summer. Nic and his friends freely frolic on the shore, and David states, "Nic's friends talk excitedly about their summer plans together - the beach, camps - but not Nic. It never gets any easier when he prepares to leave."(Sheff 63) Nic struggles with leaving his life behind because of joint custody. David worries that their divorce contributed to Nic's addiction. Nic feels a sharp divide between his loving parents. Unable to cope he experiments with drugs.
The following influence on Nics adolescence is the world around him. David frightfully expresses, "These days there are reasons more troubling than preteen awkwardness and cruelty for parents to worry. A junior high school principal I know told me that she doesn't understand what it is, but things are worse for her students than ever before."(Sheff 46) Nic begins to gravitate near kids who are bad influences. David begins to worry but concludes that forbidding friends will push Nic further toward them. David couldn't filter the environment around Nic, and could only hope for him to outgrow it. Nic rapidly intensifies his drug use, "I shock myself with my ability to rationalize and tolerate things once unthinkable. He’s just experimenting. Going through a stage. It’s only marijuana. He gets high only on weekends. At least he’s not using hard drugs. At least it’s not heroin. He would never resort to needles. At least he’s alive."(Sheff 195) Nic uses drugs to self-medicate his pain, blind to the irreversible damage it would cause.
Although Nic was a brilliant and promising boy his incapability to cope would spiral into a severe addiction. David harshly blames himself for Nic's addiction however, no one is at fault. Nic overcame his addiction with much hard work and difficulty.

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David Sheff makes his reader laugh than the next minute cry. David Sheff released all his thoughts, making the book relatable. Sheff uses the power of tone to bring to life his story.
Sheff’s tone regularly changed throughout the book. When he explained statistics, he became detached as if he was a reporter. When he was revisiting Nic’s childhood, his mood would change to warm and comfortable. His stories about his past, his thoughts, and his feelings all made him sound reflective. For instance, he stated, “I have held back my tears. But now I knew it was time to let them go” (Sheff 290). The contrast in tone allows the reader to experience different emotions.

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The main takeaway of Beautiful Boy is individual responsibility. David has to accept the fact that Nics's life choices are his own.  His advice can help parents who torture themselves with feeling at fault, “You can support his recovery but you can’t do it for him,” he states. “We try to save them. Parents try. It’s what parents do.”(Sheff 132) Regardless of how much he wishes to save his son, Nic is the only one who can decide to get clean. David can only force Nic in the right direction so many times. David expresses that one of the most challenging things about having a child addicted to drugs is that he cannot control it.