( CNN ) -- It was a year ago this month that British singer Amy Winehouse died of alcohol poisoning at 27 . The `` Back to Black '' singer had a very close relationship with her father , Mitch , and he recently released a book , `` Amy , My Daughter . '' It is a bracingly honest account of Amy 's problems with heroin , alcohol and men . But it 's not all gloomy . The book is also an intimate and tender account of his daughter , who he says was cheeky , funny and a good , but troubled , soul . The elder Winehouse , a London taxi driver and sometime jazz singer , recently spoke to CNN about his only daughter . CNN : Why did you write this book ? Mitch Winehouse : First of all , I felt that the book would help me with my recovery , and then there were lots of misconceptions about Amy after she passed away , so I wanted to set the record straight . I wanted people to see who the real Amy was , what a lovely girl she was . Also we have set up a foundation in the U.S and the UK , and we needed the money . A great way of raising money was to write a book . All the author proceeds go to the foundation . CNN : It must have been very difficult for you to write . Winehouse : Writing the book was n't too difficult actually . I was kind of in the zone , but when I had to read it back for the edits , that was really tough . That was more difficult than writing the book . CNN : What do you want people to know about Amy ? Winehouse : Certainly what a great wit she had , how funny she was , how generous she was . People still think she died of an overdose or that she committed suicide . I want people to know she had quit drugs for three years , that 's important to me . CNN : You really get a sense from reading your book how hard it is to deal with loved ones struggling with addiction . Winehouse : I pretended to have heart attacks just to shock her , nothing worked until she was ready to quit . When she was ready , she told me and she quit in December 2008 . She was clean from drugs for nearly three years . CNN : In the end , it was the alcohol that got her . Winehouse : Often one addiction can follow another . She was dealing with that . The last six weeks of her life she was abstinent . That 's even more difficult to deal with . That 's a typical pattern of someone moving toward total abstinence . She was on the course for full recovery . Alcohol will get you quicker than heroin . People think because it 's socially acceptable , it 's safe . What it does to people is just incredible . CNN : They say time heals all wounds , but I do n't think that 's true when you lose a child . Winehouse : It 's pretty much like being a drug addict . You take every day as it comes . You 're in recovery . You 're never fully recovered . After a reasonable amount of time , you 're able to function like everybody else , but of course you 'll never fully recover from something like that . It 's impossible . CNN : Does it make you sad that she only released two albums ? Winehouse : I 'm really not that displeased she did n't write any more albums . It might sound a ridiculous thing to say . The last album particularly took a lot out of her emotionally , every song was autobiographical , dragged from her soul , and I would n't want her to have made more albums like that because she would have been in constant turmoil . I 'm pleased that she did n't write more albums like that actually . CNN : She had a tattoo that read `` Daddy 's Little Girl . '' Winehouse : We had a great relationship . She had a great relationship with her mum and my wife and her brother and all her uncles and aunts . She was just a wonderful family girl . We miss her greatly . I want people to understand that she was just a normal girl who had an extraordinary talent .
Amy Winehouse 's father , Mitch , has written a book about her . He says her last album took a lot out of her emotionally . This month marks the one-year anniversary of her death .