Don't Try This at Home: A Year in the Life of Dave Navarro

Dave Navarro · Neil Strauss

Oct 2012 · Harper Collins

About this ebook

A revealing chronicle of one chaotic year in the life of the rock guitarist and Hollywood resident, featuring celebrity photos and hilarious anecdotes.

One day, Dave Navarro decided to open the doors of his house in the Hollywood hills to the chaos of the valley below. The only rule was, “Come in the house, you get in the photo booth.” The result is a diary, a sociology experiment, a documentary of Hollywood, and an exercise in exhibitionism: strippers, Kurt Loder, Marilyn Manson, pizza delivery boys, Rose McGowan, Keanu Reeves, record executives, Scott Ian, Billy Corgan, hookers, Flea, Billy Zane, drug dealers, Angelyne, Leonardo DiCaprio, the cleaning lady, Leif Garrett, Natalie Imbruglia, and everyone else who came into the house are all caught on film—whether zany, inebriated, naked, hamming it up, looking beautiful, or looking ugly, the photo booth tells no lies.

Accompanying the strips are hilarious stories, musings, tell-all anecdotes, and other glimpses into the lifestyle of one of the most decadent rock stars of our time. This chronicle of a year in Navarro’s life is also a gritty portrait of his descent into drug use and self-destructiveness, and his struggle to find meaning. Don’t Try This at Home is a visual masterpiece, a celebrity exposé, and a shocking, hilarious and irresistible read.

Ratings and reviews

I thought this book was going to talk about his rise to stardom, about how he wrote and recorded the guitar parts for the Janes Addiction albums and that one RHCP album...or maybe stories about being on tour...but NOPE. This is mostly about Dave Navarro being cooped up in his house shooting up cocaine or heroin and feeling sorry for himself; really boring stuff. I was barely able to finish reading this book in small doses at a time. Not a good read AT ALL IMO.

I've never encountered so many typos, repeated sentences & mispelled words in a book. I've read many rock/junkie autobiographies & this one has been the most boring & self absorbed of them all. Save your ten dollars folks.

Only a little over 400 pages so a short book but fascinating what he went through. Great book!

About the author

Dave Navarro racked up four platinum records and three Grammy nominations as the guitarist of Jane's Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. His 2003 marriage to Carmen Electra was captured in MTV's popular reality series, 'Til Death Do Us Part: Carmen and Dave. NEIL STRAUSS is an award-winning writer for Rolling Stone and the author or coauthor of ten New York Times bestsellers. He splits his time between Los Angeles and wherever the Jonas Brothers are.