Girl, Stop Passing Out in Your Makeup: The Bad Girl's Guide to Getting Your Sh*t Together

by Zara Barrie

Finally, a self-help book for the millennial party girl who hates bullshit advice from “experts” who know nothing about the trauma of drinking and sex, the acute pressure of keeping up with the rest of the Adderall poppin' world, and the insecurity that comes along with feeling like you have to be thin and gorgeous and s parkly in order to be seen.

“Self-help meets memoir. Party girl meets wise sage. Beauty meets reality. Zara Barrie is the cool older sister you wish you had. The one that lets you borrow her designer dresses and ripped up fishnets, buys you champagne (she loves you too much to let you drink beer), and colors your lips with bright pink lipstick. She'll take you to the coolest parties, and will stick by your side and she guides you through the glitter, pain, danger, laughter, and what it means to be a f*cked up girl in this f*cked up world (both of which are beautiful despite the darkness). Girl, Stop Passing Out in Your Makeup is for the girls that are too much of a beautiful contradiction to be contained. Zara is a gifted writer—one second she'll have you laughing over rich girls agonizing over which Birkin bag to buy, the next second she'll shatter your heart in one sentence about losing one’s innocence. Zara is the nuanced girl she writes for—light, irreverent, snarky, bitchy, funny; and aching, perceptive, deep, flawed, wise, poised, honest—all at once. Perhaps the only thing that can match Zara's unparalleled wit and big sister advice is her candid humor and undeniable talent for the written word. Zara is one of the most prolific and entertaining honest voices on the internet—and her talent is only multiplied in book form. Girl, Stop Passing Out in Your Makeup is for the bad girls, honey.”—Dayna Troisi, Executive Editor, GO Magazine

“Reading Zara's writing will make you feel like you're at your cool-as-hell big sister's sleepover party. You will be transfixed by her unflinching honesty and words of wisdom, and she'll successfully convince you to not only ditch the shame you feel about the raw and messy parts of yourself, but to dare to see them as beautiful.”—Alexia LaFata, Editor, New York Magazine

“If Cat Marnell and F. Scott Fitzgerald had a literary baby it would be Zara Barrie. She’s got Marnell’s casual, dark, downright hilarious tone of an irreverent party girl. But then she also has Fitzgerald’s talent for making words literally feel like they sparkle on the page. I’ve always been a fan of Zara’s writing but Girl, Stop Passing Out in Your Makeup takes it to the next level. With shimmery words that make her dark stories sparkle, she seamlessly manages to inspire even the most coked-out girl at the party to get her shit together.”—Candice Jalili, Senior Sex & Dating Writer, Elite Daily

Genres: Memoir, Self Help, Queer, Feminism

272 pages, Hardcover

Published May 19, 2020

Reviews

[The Nerd Daily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published on The Nerd Daily | Review by Beth Mowbray

Zara Barrie’s debut book, Girl, Stop Passing Out in Your Makeup, is not your traditional self-help book. Inspired by Rachel Hollis’s Girl, Wash Your Face, but feeling a disconnect with many of that book’s themes like marriage and parenting, Barrie decided to write her own version. Targeting self-proclaimed “bad girls” like herself, Barrie throws out conventional ideas of this genre, replacing them with a high level of millennial energy, more than a few well-placed expletives, and a large helping of her own deeply personal experiences.

You see, Barrie doesn’t hold anything back here … and for my money, that’s exactly what women these days want to see in a “self-help” book. Raw and purely authentic, never judgemental or condescending, Barrie’s aim is to speak about women’s real-life experiences … those experiences we are taught we aren’t supposed to talk about, or are too embarrassed to share, or feel that no one else could ever understand. And with a target audience of millennial women, this leaves few topics untouched.

Read the FULL REVIEW on The Nerd Daily

[Heather Siegel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a hot mess in my 20’s who thought nothing of self-medicating and blaming others. If someone had handed me GIRL, STOP PASSING OUT IN YOUR MAKEUP then, I might have gotten my act together sooner. Offering unapologetic insights, tough-love, and an urging to love and care for our bodies and ourselves, Barrie walks us through some of her own wild and troubled times, and pairs her wisdom about the rejection of dysmorphia, the toxicity of shame, the trouble with being inauthentic, the dangers of bottomless drinking, and the issues of spending time with energy vampires.

Her message to honor our girl alarms, own our mistakes, find the higher power that lives within us, and allow ourselves to fearlessly evolve and grow into the new identities of these evolved selves, is empowering. Her prose is raw, funny, lyrical, and at times, simply mesmerizing. For the struggling bad girl trying to figure out how to become a bad ass with her shit together, this is a must read.

[Hannah Orenstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first time I met Zara, I was struck by her energy, her larger-than-life glamour, and her very kind, soothing presence. She's truly special. That vibe is very much distilled into the pages of this book. I've been reading it a chapter at a time when I feel low or lost (which is, ahem, a lot at the moment) and her spirited stories always bring me comfort, distraction, and much-needed laughter. This is a gem of a book!

[Claudia Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO GOOD! I recently discovered Zara Barrie's work and decided to read her book - I was not disappointed!

The book itself shares some of Zara's life story and how to better your own life. She has a really strong voice in how she writes and shares things. There's a realness and a very raw sense to it that can resonate with many different people.

Each chapter has a song Zara recommends listening to, which I thought was super cool. She covers so many different topics - sexuality, trauma, mental health, unhealthy vs healthy coping mechanisms, and so much more. Each of these topics were talked about sensitively but also in a very honest way, which is so important.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to live a more healthy life. It's written in a way that feels like you're talking to a friend or a sister. It's honest and real advice, with a lot of personal anecdotes, to help you and to understand more about oneself and the world we're in.

[Esther Mollica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has that fun, lighthearted, and cheeky energy paired with the gravity of the dark feminine that I crave when reading queer lady books. If there's anything that I learned from watching the Barbie movie, it's that women are stronger when they share their experiences and knowledge. I related a lot to Zara's experiences in growing up through the NY party girl scene, as well as enduring femmephobia in our community. For a long time, I felt alone in this, and less alone after reading the book. If I'd had something like this to read in my twenties, I might have gotten my shit together sooner!

[Fei K · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE LOVE LOVE!
I want to marry this b*tch, except it seems that she's taken...
Totally relate. Heart-wrenching yet side-splittingly funny, this book is a must read for all the bad girls, misfits, and to be honest, the misunderstood good girls too.

[Maggie Alysen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first 3/4 of this book were super helpful and interesting to listen to until the last little bit of the book. I found the ending of the book repetitive and boring. But overall not a bad book to read.

[Kim Kauzlarich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sigh…what can I say? I obviously have a type. Another book I wish I had in my 20s and could have probably written a more-boring-less-lesbian version of.

[E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Am I this book's audience? Absolutely not. I actually think Zara would hate me if she met me because I'm boring. Am I still a Zara fan? Yes. So.

[Jen Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read. Raw, smart and funny.

[Beth Mowbray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zara Barrie is not new to putting words on a page. For over a decade she has been blogging and writing for such popular publications as Elite Daily and GO Magazine. But what is new this year is her very first book, Girl, Stop Passing Out In Your Makeup: The Bad Girl’s Guide To Getting Your Sh*t Together. As you may gather from the title, Barrie revels in the fact that this isn’t your traditional self-help book … it’s ‘more about the messy journey than it is about the picture-perfect destination.’

You see, Barrie doesn’t hold anything back here … and for my money, that’s exactly what women these days want to see in a “self-help” book. Raw and purely authentic, never judgemental or condescending, Barrie’s aim is to speak about women’s real-life experiences … those experiences we are taught we aren’t supposed to talk about, or are too embarrassed to share, or feel that no one else could ever understand. And with a target audience of millennial women, this leaves few topics untouched ...

I’m a Zara Barrie fan after reading this book, y’all! She is intelligent, bold and brave, outspoken and humorous. She tackles everything from mental health and addiction to eating disorders and finding a career path in her book.

Thanks to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

[Bookend McGee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zara, if you are reading this - thank you for the swag in the mail, also! <3

Now the review: I appreciate Zara's big sister vibe. (I would have liked to have had an older sister.) And this is a comfort of a book with some wise reminders. But I was hoping for something different than an amalgamation of her articles with a few extras. I was bored/restless: it was much too self-helpy (unfortunately without all the necessary links back to her life-story). I was expecting it to be more of a memoir with scenes (more show and less tell) or auto-fiction (overall I was expecting and hoping for a story-orientated and linearly-told book, which I think would have worked more effectively). But thank you, Zara: There are deep sentiments in here that I needed to be reminded of, and I'm grateful for you.
(Also, I dig the cover and the fact that it has a playlist. Inspires me to think of what my playlist will be for my own memoir chapters.)

[Breanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

i loved every word of this

zara wrote this book specifically for me. thank you, my lesbian big sister. and thank lana in the heavens for leading me to you and your work.