Wishful Drinking - Carrie Fisher - A Short Summary & Review

Wishful Drinking - Carrie Fisher - A Short Summary & Review

By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures

A Rite of Fancy Book Recommendation and Review

Hi! My name is Carrie, and I am an addict with a mental illness.

A short summary:

Wishful Drinking is Carrie Fisher’s unapologetically candid account of life with addiction, mental illness, fame, family legacy, and survival. Adapted from her one-woman stage show, the book moves fast and hits hard,  blending memoir, confession, and stand-up into something uniquely Fisher.

With brutal clarity and biting humor, she names the realities of bipolar disorder, alcoholism, rehab, relapse, and recovery, refusing sentimentality while insisting on truth. This is not a redemption arc so much as a survival story told out loud.

My favorite Carrie Fisher quote from the book:

"In my opinion, a problem derails your life, and an inconvenience is not being able to get a nice seat on the un-derailed train."

- Carrie Fisher, Wishful Drinking

Questions to ponder while reading:

If one in four people have a mental illness - why are they such a secret?

Doesn't everyone have at least one vice?

My review:

It takes real courage to put on your skeletons' hats and invite them to dance, and Carrie Fisher not only invites them, but also hands them a microphone.

Wishful Drinking is fearless, funny, and disarming. Fisher exposes her vulnerabilities without asking for pity, using humor not to minimize pain but to survive it. Bonus points for making the dance funny — laughter here is not denial, it’s defiance.

I deeply appreciate her work, even though I knew she wasn’t entirely sober. Perhaps especially because of that. Carrie Fisher reminds us that brilliance, honesty, and creativity do not require neat resolutions. Sometimes staying alive, staying honest, and staying funny is the victory.

This book doesn’t clean things up; it tells the truth and still makes you laugh.

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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life

She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.

You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.

✨ #TakeTheBackRoads

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