Book List: Memoirs of Madness & Meaning

What we’re drawn to as readers is deeply personal—and often shaped by the season of life we’re in. Still, few things feel more intimate than finding yourself in the pages of a book, then passing that experience along to someone else. These memoirs (and sort-of-memoirs) have stayed with me. They explore heavy, complex themes with honesty and depth, so I encourage you to approach them with care.

Hunger - Roxane Gay

A deeply personal exploration of trauma, body image, and survival in a world that pathologizes fatness and desire.

Easy Crafts for the Insane - Kelly Williams Brown

A vulnerable (and funny) look at surviving a mental health crisis, delivered through essays, sharp observations, and craft tutorials.

Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me - Anna Mehler Paperny

A combination of personal storytelling with in-depth reporting. Journalist Anna Mehler Paperny investigates her own depression, examining the treatments, medical uncertainties, and systemic failures surrounding mental health care.

So Sad Today - Melissa Broder

A collection of personal and darkly comic essays on anxiety, addiction, longing, and nihilism in the digital age.

The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression - Andrew Solomon

A Pulitzer Prize–nominated book that explores depression through personal memoir, scientific research, and interviews.

An Unquiet Mind - Kay Redfield Jamison

A landmark memoir chronicling the author’s experiences with bipolar disorder, from breakdowns to breakthroughs.

Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me - Ellen Forney

A candid graphic memoir about bipolar disorder and the myth of the ‘tortured artist’, illustrated with humour and compassion.