The term 'CIA brat' is derived from the term, 'army brat.' The connection, in this case is the author's father, an immigrant who started with America's OSS (Office of Strategic Services) during WWII as liaison with the Danish Underground, and stayed on as OSS transformed to become the CIA. The mention of 'drugs,' in the subtitle is in the context of recreational drugs used in the late 1960's, because that was when the author was in his late teens and enmeshed in being a hippie. The term, 'nutzoid mom,' may sound denigrating, yet it's likely every American family of that era had at least some dysfunctional members. Yet, if there was a Razzie-like prize for most nutzoid mom, the woman described in the memoir might be a top contender.
The author, known by his nickname 'Kim' during younger years, was born in Denmark and because of his father's various postings, wound up changing schools 11 times, spread over 5 countries. There were sheltered elitist times as well as 'down in the dumps' times � some triumphs as well as some low points, such as: spending a belladona-addled night in jail during the Newport Jazz Festival. The memoir contains more than a few head-bashingly close calls, some examples; two angry van drivers near Paris, a sexually frustrated bus driver wielding a metal bar in Madrid, two junkies from D.C. who had their drug-money heist spoiled, and saving an 80 lb. teenaged gal from getting raped by two 350 pounders along the Chesapeake Bay bridge.
The author has written a dozen books on as many topics, including; Tibetan Buddhism, science fiction, cleansing fasts, political satire, Chinese history, an adventure novel, and an audio book about Himalayan explorers.
Some of the many tangential topics ruminated about in this memoir include; describing the pineal gland and how it relates to spiritual experiences, death according to blues/folk-legend Elizabeth Cotton, how to form a gigging R&B band, lucid dreaming, and why Nixon's transcribed tapes were so rife with 'expletive deleted.'
