PiHKAL (Phenethylamines I Have Known And Loved): A Chemical Love Story

PiHKAL (Phenethylamines I Have Known And Loved) is framed as Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin’s long term “love story” centered on decades of creating and investigating psychedelic drugs to study the human mind. The book links altered state experiences with intimacy, then shifts into a more technical “chemical story” format focused on phenethylamines. It covers synthesis and physical properties, structural correlates to central nervous system activity, and the dosages and duration of observed effects. The chemical notes also include commentary and speculation about why some compounds are inactive, why some are active or not as expected, and which are too toxic to fully evaluate or still untested. The page also positions the book as their first together, originally published in 1991 with many reprints and ongoing translations.