In Wishful Drinking, Carrie Fisher tells the true and intoxicating story of her life with inimitable wit. Born to celebrity parents, she was picked to play a princess in a little movie called Star Wars when only 19 years old. "But it isn't all sweetness and light sabres." Alas, aside from a demanding career and her role as a single mother (not to mention the hyperspace hairdo), Carrie also spends her free time battling addiction, weathering the wild ride of manic depression and lounging around various mental institutions. It's an incredible tale - from having Elizabeth Taylor as a stepmother, to marrying (and divorcing) Paul Simon, from having the father of her daughter leave her for a man, to ultimately waking up one morning and finding a friend dead beside her in bed.

In light of Fisher’s passing, I have taken it upon myself to read her entire catalogue of writing. She was such an interesting woman. She was honest, raw and inspiring. She faced her demons publicly and somehow always had the strength to endure and come out on top.

A verse eerily stood out to me as I was reading: Speaking of graves, I tell my younger friends that one day they’ll be at a bar playing pool and they’ll look up at the television set and there will be a picture of Princess Leia with two dates underneath, and they’ll say “awww—she said that would happen.” And they’ll go back to playing pool.

Fisher is honest, and intriguing as she shares her childhood experiences having celebrity parents, struggles with addiction and her battle with bipolar disorder. Everything is laid bare. It is refreshing to see such a pillar for females rights sharing her flaws so openly. Her time here certainly made the world a better place. To some she is a Star Wars icon, but to a more universal crowd—she is an icon for the capacity and courage of the human spirit.

There are some profound tidbits about life weaved into this short read. For a woman that approached life with such humour, she certainly did inspire.