Books About Mental Illness

Remember being a little girl, and looking for a doll that was just like you? It could be skin color, long hair, a disability … it’s becoming far more common for dolls to be all-inclusive, and I believe books are like that too. I’m always looking for myself in books, for books I can relate to. That’s why I turn so often to books about mental illness.

The world of books is saturated with every topic under the sun, and books about mental illness are no less abundant. The books in this particular list are lesser-known novels that I’ve savored.

I didn’t organize them in any particular way; my only criteria was that these books should have less than 1,000 reviews on Goodreads (oh, and that I enjoyed reading them).

The Books:

• Are You Seeing Me? by Darren Groth
  • On one last trip to create the perfect memory before Perry goes to live in an assisted-living facility, Are You Seeing Me? gives you an inside look at the mind of someone suffering from autism like you’ve never experienced before. Be prepared to lose yourself in emotion – this was a one-sitting read.
• How to Weep in Public: Feeble Offerings on Depression from One Who Knows by Jacqueline Novak
• Liar by Rob Roberge
• Buffering: Unshared Tales of a Life Fully Loaded by Hannah Hart
  • An enthralling memoir by the creator of “My Drunk Kitchen”, Buffering gives us a behind-the-scenes look into Hart’s past. A combination of sad, witty, and optimistic themes throughout, Buffering is sure to leave you ready for more.
• OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Haydu
  • Although fairly simply written, this book was intense and easy to relate to – even if one doesn’t suffer from OCD. The characters were complex; not the shallow imitations that we sometimes see. You slowly grow to know and love the characters, and reveal the layers they hide.

Decisions, Decisions:

Although I almost didn’t include the last two titles – they had over 1,000 ratings but under 1,000 reviews – I ultimately decided to include them based on how good they were and the fact that they met my criteria for less than a certain number of reviews.

I also debated about including “Are You Seeing Me?” in this list due to the main character suffering from a form of autism, which is and yet is also not a mental illness, but I digress. It was a wonderful read, and is definitely a lesser known title.

All the Variety:

If books you can relate to are your jam, then you’re sure to find something on this list. These lesser known titles cover a variety of mental-illness-related topics – from autism to obsessive compulsive disorder – and are all wonderful reads.