Ever dreamed of changing the world? Daniel Simpson shows how not to do it. ⍾ ⍾His memoir charts a gonzo career at The New York Times. Ambitious and idealistic, he was hired to report on the Balkans but quit within months, freaked out by his editor s zeal for starting wars. ⍾ ⍾Disillusioned, he went native in Belgrade. Together with the charismatic G, who had appeared one night in lavish puffs of dope smoke, he decided to organize a Serbian version of Woodstock: a festival on an island in the Danube. ⍾ ⍾Music could revolutionize the country. It was run by a wartime mafia, and most young people dreamed of leaving. But what if they made it Ibiza crossed with Glastonbury? ⍾ ⍾To fund this transition, they hustled his contacts. But shady local businessmen had other ideas. Mr Big muscled in, and embroiled them with his henchmen. ⍾ ⍾Why do good intentions go awry? With brutally honest humor, Daniel recounts his journey to the edge, and a desperate drug-fuelled quest for the truth. ⍾ ⍾A Rough Guide To The Dark Side is a real-life trip through Balkan organized crime. More irreverent than McMafia, it has the vicarious kicks of Mr Nice and Shantaram, plus the travelogue style of a Bill Bryson or Tony Hawks, but with added bile and an overdose of drugs. http://www.roughguidedarkside.com

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