Eat and Get Gas, is a powerful story about a sad chapter in America’s history that is modern, relevant and inspiring.

A paper with the phrase 'Eat and Get Gas' in bold black letters, with salt and pepper shakers, a small cup of coffee, and a napkin holder on a white countertop, and a red drawing of a house with an 'Eat' sign.

Eat and Get Gas
A novel by J.A. Wright


Thirteen-year-old Evan Hanson is always the last in her family to know what's going on; at least, that's how it feels. When her brother gets drafted to Vietnam, her anti-war mother takes him to Canada, leaving Evan and her younger, special needs brother with their army-officer father—who, unwilling to shoulder the burden of caring for his kids, takes them to their grandmother's roadside cafe and home. At Eat and Get Gas, Evan becomes acquainted with the cast of characters that inhabit the property and its surroundings: her grandmother, a no-nonsense and loving matriarchal figure; Aunt Vivian, a know-it-all who teases everyone mercilessly but always comes through in a pinch; Uncle Frankie, who returned from Vietnam after being injured in combat and risks everything to help his war buddy.

2024 Winner BookLife Prize for Fiction

2023 Winner Sarton Award for Fiction (YA)

2023 IP Gold Winner

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From Eat and Get Gas.

“Eat Cafe opened at 7:00am, Tuesday to Sunday, or when Aunt Vivian flipped the sign in the window around to OPEN and unlocked the door. Fisky and Mrs. Fine, cafe regulars, were always waiting on the front porch.

Occasionally, Mrs. Fine brought her sister along, and they’d ask me about school. One day, Aunt Vivian told them if my mom didn’t come home soon, I’d be trying out for the school softball team. “Evan’s been playing softball for years. She’ll be the star player here for sure,” she said.

“She must get that from you, Viv. You’re a star waitress,” Fisky said as he watched her carry four loaded plates on her arm and a syrup jug on a pinky finger.”

What readers are saying about Eat and Get Gas

  • "J.A. Wright's uncanny ability to place the reader at the very center of 13-year-old Evan’s head captured me, from page 1."

    - Jenni Ogden, award-winning author of A Drop in the Ocean, and Call My Name.

  • "Storytelling at its best, 'Eat and Get Gas' grabs the reader from page one and doesn’t let go."

    - Laurie Buchanan, author of the Sean McPherson novels

  • "Eat and Get Gas ticks all of the boxes...a truly satisfying read."

    - Deborah K. Shepherd, author of So Happy Together

  • "A great cast of characters, a compelling story, and convincingly told."

    - Joe Bennett, New Zealand columnist and travel writer

  • "Complex and memorable characters are at the heart of this intriguing narrative...one exciting novel!"

    - Marianne Lile, author of Stepmother - A Memoir

  • "Evan’s story is poignant and raw and honest."

    - Cindy Eastman, author of Flip-Flops after 50

How to Grow an Addict
A novel by J.A. Wright


Randall Grange has been tricked into admitting herself into a treatment center and she doesn't know why.She's not a party hound like the others in her therapy group but then again - she knows she can't live without pills or booze.

Raised by an abusive father, a detached mother, and a loving aunt and uncle, Randall both loves and hates her life. She's awkward and a misfit. Her parents introduced her to alcohol and tranquilizers at a young age, ensuring that her teenage years would be full of bad choices, and by the time she's twenty-three, she's a full-blown drug addict, well acquainted with the miraculous power chemicals have to cure just about any problem she could possibly have and she’s in more trouble than she’s ever known was possible.

A book cover titled 'How to Grow an Addict' by J. A. Wright, featuring a potted plant with roots exposed in soil, some pills and medical supplies scattered around.
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What readers are saying about How to Grow an Addict

  • "A dark, ultimately hopeful story that reveals how a young, female addict is grown."

    - Barbara Claypole White, author of The Perfect Son

  • "This book made me laugh many times out loud but always broke my insides open with tears."

    - Anne Goldmann, artist

  • "A tremendous book about the resilience of the human spirit. Highly recommend!"

    - Marianne H. Lile, author

  • "Riveting, I couldn't close the book without knowing how it ends...a gut-wrenching portrayal of recovery that will break your heart wide open."

    - Laurie Buchanan, author

  • "Wright has written a book that, I believe, will help a lot of people understand they are not alone."

    - Carmen Blankenship

  • "How to Grow an Addict allows us to see Randall dive down the precipice of addiction and back up into the light. Well executed indeed!"

    - Diana Paul, author