GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FU’UN –
Feb. 27, 2026 – Nearly two decades ago, Anna David explored addiction, denial and recovery in her novel “Party Girl,” which centered on a young woman navigating the highs of Hollywood party culture and the long, complicated road back from substance dependence. Before that, Marian Keyes’ hilariously covered an Irish girl’s journey through alcoholism, rehab and recovery in her classic novel “Rachel’s Holiday.”
Both “Rachel’s Holiday” and “Party Girl” arrived well before the explosion of what is now known as “Quit Lit” – a category that has since grown to include bestselling memoirs such as “We Are the Luckiest” by Laura McKowen, “How to Murder Your Life” by Cat Marnell, “Quit Like a Woman” by Holly Whitaker, “Girl Walks Out of a Bar” by Lisa Smith and “Sober Curious” by Ruby Warrington.
But while recovery memoir has flourished over the past decade, novels about addiction and sobriety remains comparatively rare. Both Keyes and David offered fictional stories that explored the psychology of denial, the seduction of nightlife and the messy process of getting sober with a dose of humor and lightness not always attainable in memoir.
