Welcome back to the penultimate guest post (sobs!) of #ShatteringStigmas! Today I have Lili @ Utopia State of Mind  with us to share some of her favorite books that deal with mental health, and why she enjoyed them so much! 

Lili’s Favorite Mental Health Books

Today for Shattering Stigmas 3.0 I am going to highlight my favorite books that deal with various mental health issues. I am separating them by the mental health issue it deals with: depression, agoraphobia, obsessive compulsive disorder, and panic attacks. I also need to do a special shout out to Laura, from Green Tea and Paperbacks who made me aware of many of these books. If you want to read all of recommendations you can see this guest post she did on my blog.

All of these books I have read and reviewed (I’ll link to my in-depth thoughts). They all resonated for me in different ways and I’ll briefly talk about each. {Also all these photos are from my Instagram, so if you like them maybe you can drop me a line to let me know}.

Agoraphobia

Under Rose Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall. This book was not my first that dealt with agoraphobia, but it may have been the one that stuck with me the most. Firstly, I could really identify with the character of Norah. She is funny, intelligent, and humorous. Her tone from the very beginning of the novel is captivating. Not only does this book not tell us that “love will cure your mental illness’, but it provides a look at the bravery that confronting our fears requires. See my full review.

Highly Illogical Behaviour by John Corey Whaley. Solomon is such a great character in and of itself, but what makes the book shine is the interaction between him, Lisa, and Clark. There were fragments of myself in each of them and the ending was redeemable. This book had to work to earn my love, as Lisa was an ethically grey character. Yet at the same time, I saw so much of myself in Lisa. However, the ending is worth it and I enjoyed the book as a whole! See my full review.

Depression

Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand. This was an amazing book because it not only focused on Finley’s struggle to tell her family about her depression, but also on the family itself. There were so many levels to this book: the setting, her family characters, and her battle for acceptance. I am such a sucker for novels that focus on family and this journey of Finley’s examines a different perspective: telling your family about your depression. See my full review.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera. So this book just rips my heart out, because the story is so relatable. Not only do we all struggle with the memories of a past relationship, but there’s always guilt and the lack of closure when we lose the people we have loved. Both of these together is like a double punch to your gut. Additionally, while Griffin’s OCD is mentioned in the book, and the effect on his relationships, it is not the main emphasis. It portrays Griffin’s techniques of living with his mental health. I have had people who told me that they couldn’t get into this book, and I can see where they’re coming from. But for me, this was like a straight shot back to my high school years when I was feeling all the angst and all the relationship problems. See my full review.

Panic Attacks

Chameleon Moon by RoAnna Sylver. This is my most recent read in this post, and it may be my most loved. This is such an immersive diverse science fiction novel that deals with so many issues: freedom, resistance, and acceptance. While we have many ‘star’ characters, one of them is Regan, who suffers from panic attacks. This was the first novel I read with panic attacks, but it was not only described in a relatable way, but also had supportive characters who helps their friends get through them. There are so many reasons to love Chameleon Moon, and this is absolutely one of them See my full review.

Let me know if you’ve read any of these books, I would love to talk about them! And if you have any recommendations please stop by my blog and let me know. I am always looking for new books even if my TBR does not agree.

 

About Lili

Hello reader. My name is Lili and I am the book blogger behind Utopia State of Mind. I am a self-described book worm who loves finding new friends in books and building gigantic forts out of them (the books, not the friends). I first began blogging over a year ago because I needed an outlet to creatively talk about books, when I wasn't busy writing my Master's in Literature (specifically cyborgs). Since then, it has steadily grown into something more: a community and space for me to share the books I love and feel deserve more attention. I focus primarily on science fiction, fantasy, and diverse reads. I always love to gush about books and trade recommendations. I would love to see you around - so make sure to follow me on Twitter (where I am the most personal) on Instagram (where I am the most creative) friend me on Goodreads (to see my thoughts before the review) and like myFacebook to be notified of posts.


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So, have you read any of these? I have not (I know, I know!) but I’d love to hear your thoughts! What are some of your favorites?

Posted October 13, 2017 by Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight in #ShatteringStigmas, Giveaway, Guest Post, Mental Health / 8 Comments

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8 responses to “Guest Post: Lili’s Favorite #ShatteringStigmas Books!

  1. Under Rose Tainted Skies is one I definitely want to read, I’ve seen several good reviews so I’m in on that one. History Is All You Left Me sound great too, for the relationship stuff and the OCD rep. They all sound good though- thanks for the recs!!

  2. I really like History is All You Left Me and Highly Illogical Behavior. You are right, at the beginning it’s pretty suspicious, but it carries on to a great realization on the character’s part. I have been wanting to read Under a Rose Tainted Sky, but had never heard of Chameleon Moon, so thanks for the suggestion!

  3. Ann

    I hadn’t heard of any of these books before, and I’d really like to look at some of them. Only a tiny portion of books I’ve read relating to mental health have been novels; I’ve read a good deal of memoir and essay collections. Thank you for this post, and for providing so many good links!

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