E for Ecstasy by Nicholas Saunders
Appendix 1: Reference Section

17 Ecstasy - The Arrival of a Consciousness-Raising Drug (book), by Arno Adelaars, published by in de Knipscher, 1991

This book is in Dutch only, but may soon be available in English. A new edition is due out in 1993.

It is about his own experience and the history of MDMA in Holland. The first dealer to bring 1,000 Es from the United States in 1985 couldn't get rid of them, even to people who had tried Ecstasy. The early 'E' parties in 1989 were exclusive. People made eye contact, let themselves go out of control and behaved in individually bizarre ways. But when taking E became a mass phenomenon, people started behaving according to others' expectations, and the true individuality and contact was lost. Adelaars sees two distinct types of uses and users: extroverts and introverts; Ken Kesey/Timothy Leary; entertainment/intellectual; party/home. His book contains interviews with both types of users and his advice about using Ecstasy is don't take it unless you are feeling good. He believes the aftereffect of mellowness spreads to other people who you are in contact with. He compares the effect of Ecstasy - feeling relaxed and loose-limbed - to being in love or being on holiday in a tropical country.

The author writes from his own experience of the drug and his knowledge of manufacture and distribution, having visited an MDMA 'factory'. He is also one of the few writers with personal experience of both home and party use.