Books that Speak to the Mind and Heart: Stories Centering Mental Health

unabridgedpod
5 days ago
4 min read

Curated by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books)

Mental health is a topic that deserves thoughtful conversation—and literature has long been one of the most powerful ways to explore it. In this post, we're highlighting books that center mental health in meaningful, resonant ways. Whether through deeply personal essays, emotionally charged fiction, or reflective memoirs, each of these titles offers a unique perspective on the complexities of the human mind and heart.

From John Green’s The Anthropocene Reviewed, which blends humor and vulnerability in a series of five-star reflections, to Jandy Nelson’s unforgettable portrayal of grief and healing in I’ll Give You the Sun, these books invite us to sit with difficult emotions, to find solace in shared experiences, and to better understand ourselves and others.

If you're looking for stories that are honest, insightful, and emotionally rich, these are well worth your time.

John Green's THE ANTHROPOCENE REVIEWED - A Rating of a Book of Ratings (Jen's Review)

From the Review: "When Green began his podcast The Anthropocene Reviewed, I immediately subscribed. What a joy. His intention: to rate things in the human-centered world on a five-star scale, resulted in personal, thought-provoking, and moving episodes. The basic structure was that a short (maybe 30-minute) episode would be split in two parts, and he would review something different in each part. These are funny and wry, well researched, illuminating things I hadn't thought of before.

"The day he announced that he'd writing a book based on the podcast, I pre-ordered it. And it is perfection. As with the podcast, I laughed, I cried more than once. I rarely read books at a leisurely pace, but this one I did, not wanting it to end too soon. (That never happens for me!) Some of the essays are versions of podcast episodes, and others are new. I love both equally." Click the title above to see the full review.

Jandy Nelson's I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN -Ashley's Book Review (Ashley's Review)

From the review: "I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson is a literary work of genius. This is one I read quite a while ago, but it has stayed with me and remains one of my favorites. It's riveting and powerful without seeming forced or contrived in any way. It's the story of twins, Jude and Noah, whose lives are drastically, irreparably altered by a catastrophic event. The entire story shapes itself around that event and their quest to find themselves functioning on the other side.

Let's talk about structure first. Both twins have narrative rights, and they each have a very distinct story to tell." Click the title above to see the full review.

Joanna Ho's THE SILENCE THAT BINDS US - Growing and Learning After Loss (Ashley's Review)

From the review: "There's so much to unpack here. School and societal pressures, stereotyping, white privilege, the larger historical context of present-day dynamics, mental health, and what activism can look like are just a few of the many issues that Ho takes on in this powerful book. And despite being so heavy on social issues, the characters at the core of this novel are lovingly crafted and beautifully flawed. I shed a lot of tears while reading this one because we feel alongside the characters." Click the title above to see the full review.

Ada Calhoun's WHY WE CAN'T SLEEP - This Book Speaks to Me! (Jen's Review)

From the review: "I cannot tell you how many photos of Ada Calhoun's Why We Can't Sleep: Women's New Midlife Crisis I texted to Ashley and Sara, accompanied by exclamations like 'This book is speaking to me!!!' and 'I started Why We Can't Sleep and have been compelled to book dart 7 times. I'm on page 6.' I do not KNOW the last time I have identified so strongly with a book. " Click the title above to see the full review.

Yara Zgheib's THE GIRLS AT 17 SWANN STREET (Ashley's Review)

From the review: "This story is the struggle of Anna Roux, an anorexic twenty-six year old married French woman living in America with her husband of three years, Matthias. As the story unfolds, Anna has been voluntarily placed in care at 17 Swann Street in DC, a residential facility for women with severe anorexia or bulimia. The novel is a powerful examination of everything leading up to that moment side by side with the experience of being in the residential facility itself, trying to find a way back from starvation and into life." Click the title above to see the full review.

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