Comforting Books to Read When You’re Feeling Lost or Depressed

When you have no direction in life or struggle to move on from a difficult event, you might feel lost and depressed. Sometimes, the best thing you can do is to try to put things into perspective by reading an inspiring novel. Here are the top three comforting books I like to rely on when I’m having a bad day.

The Midnight Library

Comforting Books Author: Matt Haig

What if you could see what your life would look like if you’d done things differently? The protagonist, Nora, decides to commit suicide after she realises she isn’t happy and that she regrets the way her life turned out. She ends up at the midnight library, where a mysterious librarian encourages her to reflect on her situation and allows her to witness her parallel lives resulting from different choices.

As you might have guessed, the message is that no matter what you choose, you can’t control the outcome. Even if you think you’d have been more content if you’d chosen to go to university, stayed with your ex or taken up a coding course when you were a teenager, you can’t know for sure that it would be the case. And every choice you make, every hardship you go through makes you you.

We often fall victim to putting pressure on ourselves to achieve a goal before we turn a certain age, which makes us regret not making some decisions sooner. But it’s important to remember that everything we do is a valuable lesson and that success isn’t just reserved for young people. To sum up, it’s never too late to go after what you want and remember to count your blessings.

Beyond The Secret Garden

Comforting Books Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett

Beyond The Secret Garden is a book that was written for children. But I think every adult should read it if they haven’t already because it has many great lessons that we tend to forget in adulthood. In a nutshell, it’s a story about a spoilt orphan who is sent to live with an uncle in the English countryside. They’re then forced to learn how to be selfless and empathetic as a result.

It’s hard to describe what it can teach you without spoiling the plot but living in the moment and the power of believing in yourself is one of them. It’s also a good reminder to appreciate the beauty of nature. Whenever I read it, I feel like going on a trip and doing a digital detox, which does wonders for my mental health. Sometimes, our problems stem from comparing our lives to others on social media and being hard on ourselves for not achieving goals at the same pace.

Norwegian Wood

Comforting Books Author: Haruki Murakami

The novel follows a young university student who is trying to find joy in life after his friend killed himself. He is in a relationship with his friend’s ex, who is suffering from depression, and then meets a girl who is the exact opposite: bold and outgoing.

While it might seem to be a depressing story about love, it’s a nostalgic tale about human emotions, dealing with loss and moving on. The general message is that even when things get tough, we have to keep living. Norwegian Wood is my go-to book when I want to remind myself that we all have problems we have to deal with. While grieving is normal, it’s not good to fixate on the past.

If you don’t like the sound of any of the books, it’s also a good idea to read a novel you enjoyed as a child and try to reconnect with that part of yourself. The great thing about reading during childhood is that our imagination is more vivid, and we tend to be more carefree. When we grow up, that magic might be hard to replicate, but we can always evoke a sense of nostalgia.