The book that made you want to live again
No self-help books please. Fiction or non-fiction only.
What book made you want to live again?
I am in a generally depressed state. Im finding it hard to find joy in things I used to love. And I want to read again, hopefully get to restart with something that sparks with loving to live.
It doesnt need to be a feel good, it can be sad with a triumphant ending.
Please mention if there are themes related to infidelity or grooming, these are pretty triggering to me but would be willing to explore based on your thoughts and reviews.
by veerus06
9 Comments
I’m sorry you’re in this position. Thank you for reaching out.
As for me, twice now, _Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop_ by Hwang Bo-Reum turned out to be exactly what I needed to feel like just being alive is okay.
I hope things get better soon.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The midnight library, Matt Haig.
I do know that some others have found it too simple, so be aware of that.
As for your triggers: no grooming. There is a boyfriend/ex-boyfriend (or ex-husband?), and I’m not sure what the reason for splitting up was. If there’s infidelity involved, it’s mentioned in passing and only “off screen”, and it’s not a major plot point.
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (or really any of his works).
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Ragged Company by Richard Wagamese
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Assuming by no self-help you mean no unsupported feel good nonsense:
Feeling Good by David Burns was written to work alongside cognitive behavioral therapy sessions, which is reasonably supported as treatment for depression. The book was also used in clinical testing as “bibliotherapy” with promising results. (Can’t link, but “feeling good bibliotherapy” on Google scholar will give you the study.)
An alternative is meditation. Why Buddhism is True by Robin Wright shows the psychological support for many of the tenets of Buddhism and meditation as self improvement. Some of the stuff at the very end gets a bit more abstract and vague for me, but the core is really well supported. (It’s not advocating that the supernatural elements are literally true. It is instead showing that some of the ideas behind how we process the world that Buddhism discusses are consistent with modern psychology. The “truth” is in the sense of providing some tools that are useful today.)
Angela’s Ashes changed my life. It reminded me that life was worth fighting for and showed me how to fight.
I don’t remember infidelity or grooming but there’s a heavy dose of deadbeat alcoholic dad and lots of poverty and death.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
What you’re looking for is in the library – Michiko Aoyama. It deals with people having different dilemmas at different ages. I found it at a time in my life when I was feeling lost, and it gave me the courage I needed