10 books about the joy and heartbreak of female friendship
Gráinne O'Hare's Thirst Trap is a bittersweet, bitingly funny, and painfully relatable story about the friendships that endure through the very best and the very worst of times. Gráinne joins us to share her top ten books that explore the highs and lows of female friendship.
"For many of us, friendships are some of the most intimate and long-term relationships of our lives. Storytelling has played such an important role in all of my closest friendships – women huddled around pub tables recounting horror stories about work, family, and dating, retelling and reminiscing about shared memories that are part of the group’s canonical lore. It's no surprise, therefore, that friendship took centre stage when I came to write my debut novel; I wanted Thirst Trap to feel like sharing a bottle of wine with pals who may not always make the best decisions, but they always have the best stories. Here are some of my favourite books about female friendship, in all its heartache and romance." Gráinne O'Hare
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
In the wake of Lila's sudden disappearance, narrator Elena reflects on memories of their post-war childhood in working-class Naples, and the complexities of their long-term friendship. The first of Ferrante's Neapolitan novels and a truly brilliant work in its own right.
Exile by Aimée Walsh
In Exile, eighteen-year-old Fiadh relocates to Liverpool for university while her closest school friends remain in their home city of Belfast. A raw and heartbreaking novel that weaves together multitudes: the suffocating loneliness of moving away for university, the complex evolution of friendship, and the sting of betrayal and trauma.
Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
Widely acknowledged as a core text for millennial women, Everything I Know About Love is a funny and vivacious memoir about parties, dating, messy flat-shares, quarter-life crises, and the long-term romance of female friendship.
Wahala by Nikki May
Wahala centres around Ronke, Simi, and Boo, who have known each other since university, and whose friendship is threatened by the arrival of the wealthy and glamorous Isobel into their group. A juicy read that explores themes of race, class, and the dark sides of friendship.
Feeling Sorry for Celia by Jaclyn Moriarty
Elizabeth and Christina live in Sydney and are paired up as part of an inter-school correspondence scheme. The titular Celia has run away to join the circus, and Elizabeth finds solace in expressing her worries about her free-spirited best friend in letters to a total stranger. Told through a series of letters and hastily-scribbled notes, Feeling Sorry for Celia is by turns hilarious and moving.
Animals by Emma Jane Unsworth
Thirty-two and engaged after a whirlwind romance, Laura feels torn between the hedonistic abandon of drink and drug-fuelled nights out in Manchester with her best friend Tyler, and the temperate domesticity of her fiancé Jim. Funny, tender, and wise, Animals is a rip-roaring novel.
The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer
Greer is a recent college graduate who secures a job at a non-profit organisation founded by second-wave feminist icon Faith Frank. A coming-of-age story told with Wolitzer's signature humour and sympathy, The Female Persuasion explores feminism and power alongside the complexities of mentoring and friendship.
Fiona and Jane by Jean Chen Ho
A collection of vignettes alternating between the titular protagonists, Fiona and Jane explores the disconnect of two childhood friends separated by distance. Told with sadness and sensitivity, this book feels like an assortment of the kind of stories and memories Fiona and Jane would have shared with each other had they not drifted apart in their twenties.
Her Majesty's Royal Coven by Juno Dawson
After swearing their allegiance to Her Majesty's Royal Coven as girls, Helena, Leonie, Niamh, and Elle have grown apart as friends but remain bound by magic. This is the first book in a trilogy that flawlessly blends witches and the occult with the complexities of modern feminism and friendship.
One Day I Shall Astonish the World by Nina Stibbe
In my humble opinion, Nina Stibbe is one of the most genuinely funny writers ever published. It comes as no surprise that her novel about Susan and Norma, who meet working in a haberdashery in the nineties, is a delightful, warm, moving, and witty tale of long-term female friendship in adulthood.
About Thirst Trap by Gráinne O'Hare
Sometimes friends hold you together.
Sometimes they’re why you're falling apart.
Maggie, Harley and Róise are friends on the brink: of triumph, catastrophe, or maybe just finally growing up. Their crumbling Belfast houseshare has been witness to their roaring twenties, filled with questionable one-night stands and ruthless hangovers. But now fault-lines are beginning to show.
The three girls are still grieving the tragic death of their friend, Lydia, whose room remains untouched. Their last big fight hangs heavy over their heads, unspoken since the accident. And now they are all beginning to unravel.
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