{"product_id":"9781491769034","title":"Portrait of a Drug Dealer","description":"\u003cp\u003e“The off ramp came as a surprise. Mechanically, I turned the steering wheel. Windshield wipers were keeping time with the pulsing bass pumping out the amp in the trunk, rain sliced through the night sky pelting a dreary line of soulless metallic shells. My knuckles were white, my palms sweaty. As I tried to light a cigarette, the numbness permeating my whole body intensified in my thumb, thwarting my attempts to spark the lighter. I had lost too much blood. Tears came rushing to my eyes, but I stifled them with a long snort. This was no time for weakness. It did not matter that I was alone in the car.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWeakness is a choice. Certainly there are those who are predisposed to weakness, to cowardice, but it is inevitably a choice for which there is no excuse. One may point to past traumatic experiences, one may use their upbringing to rationalize character defects, but it always comes down to a choice. People choose to be weak, and that for me was not a choice. Well, it was a choice, but one that would ultimately lead to either prison or the grave.” \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e-excerpt from Portrait of a Drug Dealer\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"iUniverse, Incorporated","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47181551993072,"sku":"9781491769034","price":3.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781491769034_p0.jpg?v=1763659463","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781491769034","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}