Carr's and Vale's book are essentially the same. Carr uses a cool metaphor of the Pitcher Plant to describe the trap of alcohol; Vale's book may be a slightly smoother read.
In a nutshell: alcohol is a poison with no benefits of any kind. The benefits ascribed to it are illusory (remember, an illusion isn't something that doesn't exist, but rather is something that isn't what it appears to be). You have illusions about alcohol due to brainwashing (a result of our culture, including upbringing, social influences, media, and advertising). Once you see through the illusion you will have no desire to drink, so will have no need to use willpower to stop drinking (hence the claim that it's "easy" to stop).
This approach works for me because I was a medicinal drinker: vodka and water, to cope with anxiety and stress. The illusion was that alcohol helped, when it actually increased both. Alcohol produced massive chemical changes in my brain which made me feel different, and which I mistakenly saw as evidence that it was helping me.
I believe that social drinkers would also have their illusions dispelled by reading either book.
As Carr says, keep reading or re-reading until the penny drops. When it does, the temptation to drink disappears.