Originally published in 1939, when A.A. membership numbered about one hundred, Alcoholics Anonymous has steadily grown in readership. By the time the second edition appeared in 1955, membership had reached over 150,000, and the Big Book, A.A. members’ fond title for their basic text, had reached a distribution of more than 300,000. At the time of the third edition, in March 1976, the worldwide membership of A.A. was estimated at 1 million or more. The basic text, pages 1-164, which had been the foundation of recovery for so many alcoholics remained, and still remains, unchanged. The General Service Conference-approved fourth edition of Alcoholics Anonymous was first printed in October 2001 and has been reprinted 30 times since then. This edition includes 24 new stories that provide contemporary sharing for newcomers seeking recovery from alcoholism in A.A. during the early decades of the 21st century. Sixteen stories are retained from the third edition, including the “Pioneers of A.A.” section, which helps the reader remain linked to A.A.’s historic roots and shows how alcoholics get sober today. More than 30 million copies of the first four editions of the Big Book have been distributed. This is the only A.A.W.S.-authorized e-book version of Alcoholics Anonymous.
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