This article was originally published on Audible.com.
When I quit drinking almost six years ago, the alcohol-free landscape was pretty ... dry. Life without booze felt like an ascetic feat of abstinence and 12-step programs, not a cool lifestyle option. Instead of shops and bars overflowing with artisanal elixirs, eight kinds of hop water, and mock mezcal, there were a few dusty bottles of syrupy fake wine on the lowest shelf in the liquor store and, if you were lucky, a lone nonalcoholic beer on tap. Book publishing followed a similar trajectory. We did have addiction memoirs—wild stories of the drunken descent and rock-bottom landing before the requisite rehab-and-recovery arc—but just a few classic manuals on the science and psychology of alcohol, and practically nothing for someone considering a temporary break.
These days, you don’t have to hit bottom to quit drinking—you don’t even have to quit. To be “sober curious” could mean embracing sobriety during Dry January or Sober October, being more mindful about alcohol consumption, or digging into the growing genre of “quit lit” for a peek at life on the other side. Many of these titles are strangely powerful—as for myself, after more than a decade of wondering and worrying, I finally quit drinking after . In fact, I quit before I even finished the book. (Thanks again, Annie Grace.)
Audio is an ideal medium for the topic. Author-narrated memoirs feel especially intimate, like a friend confiding over coffee. Most important, listening can be a powerful way to replace the voice in your head with a new one—one that’s nonjudgmental, informed, and interesting. These audiobooks are edifying for a range of stages and goals, whether you listen with a sparkling seltzer or cold beer in hand. And who knows? One might be the magic bullet for you. Note: If you think you might have a dependency on alcohol, it’s important to consult with a doctor as stopping on your own can be dangerous or even fatal. Remember, you don’t have to go it alone.
Non-fiction listens for the sober-curious
Memoirs on alcohol addiction and recovery
