Professional addiction treatment, support groups (like Alcoholics Anonymous), and self-care are some of the many factors that have helped people struggling with alcohol use disorder on their road to sobriety.
While books are not the all-in-one cure for alcoholism, they serve as additional resources for self-care that can help you and your family members develop alcohol-free habits.
Here’s a list of books on alcohol addiction written by best-seller authors. They include gripping memoirs by authors like Laura McKowen, Caroline Knapp, and the renowned clinical psychologist, Roy Eskapa with his latest research on alcoholism.
10+ Best Books That Can Help With Alcohol Addiction
These memoirs and non-fiction books give you an inside look into how people struggling with alcohol and other substance use learned to moderate or quit the addiction. They provide guidance and support as you or your loved one work your way to recovery.
1. This Naked Mind by Annie Grace
Annie Grace, author of This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life, had to navigate life at 26 as someone struggling with alcohol use disorder. In this book — part memoir, part science-based non-fiction, Annie shares her recovery experience and how she regained control of her life.
She writes with clear insight and compassion about the challenges she faced as a high-functioning alcoholic running a multinational company. In this book, she beckons people with an unhealthy relationship with alcohol to consider a life outside of drinking.
This Naked Mind was written with the understanding that people find it difficult to quit their drinking addiction because they believe life outside of alcohol may be miserable and boring. Instead, the author urges readers to embrace a life without strong cravings and compulsions.
2. We Are the Luckiest by Laura McKowen
Want to read about an adventurous yet riotous recovery journey by a recovered alcoholic? Then, We Are the Luckiest: The Surprising Magic of a Sober Life by Laura McKowen is a great choice.
In her story, the author shared how in her early days of quitting drinking, she had a fit and threw a tantrum because she felt she had left behind a life of adventure. She believed that people who could drink casually were lucky.
As she progressed on her recovery journey, she discovered the opposite — she was the lucky one. This book serves as a guiding light for recovering readers who may feel ashamed or guilty about dealing with alcohol use disorder.
3. Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker
Holly Whitaker’s book provides readers with a non-traditional roadmap to recovery in addition to the typical addiction treatment and substance use supervision.
In the fact-based study, Holly takes a deep dive into America’s alcohol industry and how big brands influence society’s perception of booze through targeted marketing campaigns.
The book is a must-read for everyone who is intrigued by or interested in understanding their relationship with alcohol, and the rise of unhealthy drug use in America today.
4. The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober by Catherine Gray
Some of the root causes of alcohol abuse, as the book highlights, stem from today’s society associating drinking with celebration.
Family and friends around the world typically celebrate significant life events like weddings, birthdays, achievements, etc., by drinking. This makes it difficult to relate the idea of being sober with happy moments.
In her book, The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober: Discovering a Happy, Healthy, Wealthy, Alcohol-Free Life, Catherine Gray dissects the science behind why people drink. She writes about society’s expectations and standards regarding drinking and sobriety, and how a sober person can live a happy life despite their decision to stop drinking.
5. The Sober Lush by Jardine Libaire & Amanda Eyre Ward
Like many other sober people, one of the fears authors Jardine Libaire and Amanda Eyre Ward had when they decided to quit their drinking habits was that life was going to become a bore-fest.
However, on their path to recovery and healing, they realized that alcohol only made them numb. In their book The Sober Lush: A Hedonist Guide to Living a Decadent, Adventurous, Soulful Life–Alcohol-Free, both women write about their wellness journey, and how they were able to make sobriety fun, vibrant, and adventurous after recovery.
6. Drink by Ann Dowsett Johnston
More than just a memoir, this author writes using informative, fact-based research on the relationship between women and alcohol. In her book, Drink: The Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol, Ann Dowsett Johnson warns society of a shocking epidemic of the rise of risky binge drinking among female folk.
The book attributes this epidemic rise to societal, economic, and psychological factors as Ann Dowsett shares her story, and shares new insight into how society and the alcohol industry have taken advantage of this epidemic.
7. Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget by Sarah Hepola
Sarah Hepola started drinking at a young age; from taking sips from her parents’ drinks to increasing her intake in adolescence, her desire for alcohol grew as she became an adult and gained independence.
Bouts of drinking caused Sarah to spend a lot of time blacked out, leading to many hours of memory loss in her day-to-day life. She writes about the deepest, darkest parts of her story, focusing on many of the things she drank to forget like sexual trauma, losing friends, and childhood drinking, among others.
8. The Dry Challenge by Hilary Sheinbaum
The Dry Challenge: How to Lose the Booze for Dry January, Sober October, and Any Other Alcohol-Free Month is an unexpectedly easy guide with clear descriptions and tips on how to start your sobriety journey.
The author began her journey to sobriety with a simple bet with her friend to make it through January without drinking. This eventually became a lifestyle for her, even long after.
Sheinbaum shares inspirational advice on how to cut back on social alcohol consumption and embrace booze-free living one month at a time. You’ll find helpful alcohol-free activities, mocktail recipes, and ways to break the news of your drink-free lifestyle to your friends, in this book.
9. A Happier Hour by Rebecca Weller
Tired of a lifestyle of blurry evenings and painful hangovers, author Rebecca Weller took time to process and understand her relationship with alcohol. This eventually led her to hop on the road headed toward freedom from alcohol.
In the book, A Happier Hour, Rebecca went deep into her alcoholism story. She shared honest and vulnerable moments in her recovery process as she spent time regaining control over her life, and discovering herself on the path to breaking alcohol addiction.
10. Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp
This book is almost three decades old, but its content remains evergreen. It was a 1996 best-selling title where author, Caroline Knapp, described her experience as a high-functioning drinker and substance user for 20+ years.
She shared how she was a magnet for career accolades in her daily life but an alcohol addict at night, which led her to a life of shame trying to hide her double life. Drinking: A Love Story, is a tale of success and triumph by a woman who struggled with alcohol use disorder.
11. The Cure for Alcoholism by Roy Eskapa
Outside of memoirs, some other exceptionally written books on alcohol addiction can help with recovery. The Cure for Alcoholism: The Medically Proven Way to Eliminate Alcohol Addiction is one such book that takes a medical approach to retrain the brain to curb the desire for alcohol.
It was written by a medical professional, Dr. Roy Eskapa, a clinical psychologist, and Dr. David Sinclair, an alcohol researcher. These authors have years of medical research related to alcohol under their belt and have provided a solution for people who want to beat addiction with science via the book.
Wrapping Up
The road to recovery looks different for many people. Going by the above books, reflecting on the connection between the effects alcohol use has on one’s body and mental health has been key in breaking the habit of drinking.
These books provide a clear direction for beginners who are ready to start their recovery process and encouragement for those who have already begun, through the authors’ real-life experiences.
In addition to learning from the stories and research in these books, if you or someone you know needs help treating alcohol addiction, book an appointment with a Curednation clinician today to take the first steps toward addiction recovery.
