I personally vouch for the genuine value of each book on this list. Mental health is so important, and these books promote healing through humor, insight, and lessons learned from real-life experiences. Anxiety and depression are manageable, and these books are a friendly reminder that you aren’t alone in how you’re feeling.
1. Hyperbole and a Half – Allie Brosh
Brosh writes with endearing honesty and humor about her life, in a way that immerses you in her stories. She tells stories about her childhood, her dogs, and living with depression that will make you laugh, cry, and feel a little bit less lonely.
2. How to be Happy (Or At Least Less Sad) – Lee Crutchley
This workbook challenges you to acknowledge your feelings and emotions, in order to find the source of what is bothering you and ultimately help you defeat your depression and/or anxiety. This book asks you to check-in periodically to record your emotions, gives you activities for mindfulness, and is a great way to track your progress over time.
3. Start Where You Are – a Journal for Self-Exploration – Meera Lee Patel
Filled with uplifting quotes, this journal has various prompts and questions for self-exploration that help you get to the root of who you are and who you want to become.
4. Drinking at the Movies – Julia Wertz
Julia Wertz chronicles her journey from San Francisco to New York in this full-length graphic novel. Her story is a coming-of-age that most twenty-somethings can relate to.
5. Color Me Calm – Lacy Mucklow (+ a pack of colored pencils)
This coloring book provides distraction from your worries and thoughts as you focus on calming designs. Doing something mindless with your hands can be a productive distraction that helps take your mind off of anxieties or sadness.
6. The 52 Lists Project – Moorea Seal
This journal contains 52 lists – one for every week of the year – with prompts relating to each season. It is perfect for individuals who like making lists, or those who want a way to chronicle their lives.
7. Wreck This Journal – Keri Smith
Already widely popular, Wreck This Journal is the perfect outlet to release stress, anger, or frustration in a productive manner. It is also something you can do when feeling bored or angry, or even when you’re happy.
8. It’s Kind of a Funny Story – Ned Vizzini
This book really resonated with me when I first read it; it follows the main character’s journey and struggle in overcoming his depression. It addresses real-life situations that many people face, including coping with stress and evaluating self-worth. It’s Kind of a Funny Story talks honestly about feelings of depression and thoughts of suicide, and mirrors an experience the author had himself.
9. The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Steven Chbosky
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a poignant read that tugs on your heart strings, makes you laugh, and has some fairly insightful quotes to live by. “We accept the love we think we deserve” – Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
10. Yes Please – Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler is witty, insightful, thoughtful, and talented. This memoir covers Poehler’s beginnings with the Upright Citizens Brigade to her hit show Parks and Recreation. Poehler is humorous and honest as she conveys the wisdom and advice she has learned over the years, and after you finish this book, I truly believe you will be inspired to go out and do great things.
11. The Opposite of Loneliness – Marina Keegan
This book caught my attention because of the tragedy surrounding it. Marina Keegan was killed in a car accident at twenty-two years old, five days after her graduation from Yale, and this is a collection of her essays and fiction published posthumously. The title essay, “The Opposite of Loneliness,” expresses a feeling most of us have experienced but failed to put into words – Keegan writes, “We don’t have a word for the opposite of loneliness, but if we did, I could say that’s what I want in life.”