
Mental health book reviews are published every Wednesday on MH@H. I review non-fiction books on topics related to mental health and illness, and I particularly enjoy reviewing books by indie authors. My goal with reviews is to help readers learn something from a book even if they don’t end up going on to read it.
I’m a Top Reviewer on NetGalley. I also post reviews on Goodreads and LibraryThing.
This page includes the books I’ve reviewed so far. I’ve added subject tags in italics if a book’s subject isn’t clear from the title.
The names of authors who are fellow bloggers are hyperlinked to their blogs. Their books cover some additional genres outside of what I typically review. You can also find them on my author friends shelf on Goodreads.
If there’s a book you’d like me to consider reviewing, you can get in touch with me via my Contact page.
Table of Contents
Mental Illness Book Reviews
Addiction
- In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor MatƩ
- The Mindfulness Workbook for Addiction, 2nd ed., by Rebecca E. Williams and Julie S. Kraft
Porn Addiction
- He’s a Porn Addict… Now What? by Tony Overbay and Joshua Shea
- I Am Reading This Book About Porn Addiction for a Friend by Joshua Shea
- Porn and the Pandemic by Joshua Shea
- The Addiction Nobody Will Talk About by Joshua Shea
Anxiety
- Calm & Sense by Wendy Leeds
- Everything Isn’t Terrible by Kathleen Smith
- Freedom from Health Anxiety by Karen Lynn Cassiday
- How to Be Yourself by Ellen Hendriksen
- Mindful Somatic Awareness for Anxiety Relief by Michele L. Blume
- Overcoming Anticipatory Anxiety by Sally M. Winston and Martin N. Seif
- Red Face by Russell Norris
- Show Your Anxiety Who’s Boss by Joel Minden
- The Anxiety Book for Trans People by Freiya Benson
- The Anxiety Skills Workbook by Stefan G. Hoffmann
- The Panic Attack Relief Workbook by Mayra Diaz
- What Happened to Make You Anxious? by Jaime Castillo
- You Got This by Caroline Foran
Bipolar Disorder
- An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
- Bipolar Me by Janet Coburn
- Birth of A New Brain by Dyane Harwood
- Braving Bipolar by Stephanie Schlosser
- Bring Me To Light by Eleanor Segall
- But Deliver Me from Crazy by Katie R. Dale
- Manic Man by Jason Wegner
- Mindfulness for Bipolar Disorder by William R. Marchand
- My Bipolar Mind by Samantha Steiner
- My Bipolar Mind: Surviving the Chaos by Samantha Steiner
- Polishing the Facets of Life with Bipolar by E.M. Sebree
- Spiders, Vampires and Jail Keys by Brooke O’Neill
- The Ups and Downs ā A Bipolar Picture Book by Kat Owens
Depression
- Are We There Yet? by Elizabeth Jones (memoir, recovery, faith)
- Dealing with Depression by Jan Marsh
- Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson (memoir, humour)
- Getting By by Jack Trelance
- Have You Heard the Sound of Your Own Voice? by Krithika Chandrasekar
- Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me by Anna Mehler Paperny
- How to Be Miserable by Randy J. Paterson
- How to Stop Feeling so Damn Depressed by Jonas A. Horwitz
- How to Tell Depression to Piss Off by James Withey
- Lost Connections by Johann Hari
- Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig
- The ACT Workbook for Depression & Shame by Matthew W. McKay, Michael Jason Greenberg, and Patrick J. Fanning
- The Depression Toolkit by William Knaus, Alex Korb, Patricia J. Robinson, Lisa M. Schab, and Kirk D. Strosahl
- The Inflamed Mind by Edward Bullmore
Eating Disorders
- From Famine to Feast by K. Michelle Pahl (bulimia nervosa)
- Stand Tall Little Girl by Hope Virgo (anorexia nervosa)
OCD
- Everything You Need to Know About OCD by Lynne M. Drummond
- Relationship OCD by Sheva Rajaee
- Rewire Your OCD Brain by Catherine M. Pittman and William H. Youngs
- The Mindfulness Workbook for OCD by Jon Hershfield and Tom Corboy
- The Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Diary by Charlotte Dennis
- The Self-Compassion Workbook for OCD by Kimberley Quinlan
Personality Disorders
- Complex Borderline Personality Disorder by Daniel J. Fox
- I Hate You ā Donāt Leave Me by Jerold J. Kreisman and Hal Strauss (borderline personality disorder)
Psychotic Disorders
- Good Days and Bad Days by Mio Angelo
- My Beautiful Psychosis by Emma Goude
- My Brother’s Journey by Marie Abanga
- My Colour-Coded Life by Megan Jackson Hall
- Raising the Alarm by Arron Whittaker
- The Collected Schizophrenias by EsmƩ Weijun Wang
Stigma
- A Series of Unfortunate Stereotypes by Lucy Nichol
- No One Cares About Crazy People by Ron Powers
- Nobody’s Normal by Roy Richard Grinker
- The Stigma Effect by Patrick Corrigan
- Written Off by Philip T. Yanos
- Your Mental Health and You by Sandy Pace
Suicide
- Hello, Cruel World: 101 Alternative to Suicide for Teens, Freaks & Other Outlaws by Kate Bornstein
- Suicidal: Why We Kill Ourselves by Jesse Bering
- The Suicidal Thoughts Workbook by Kathryn Hope Gordon
Trauma, PTSD, c-PTSD, and Dissociative Disorders
- Brain Storm by Shelley Kolton (dissociative identity disorder)
- Ghosts Within by Garry Leech (PTSD)
- Healing Sexual Trauma Workbook by Erika Shershun
- How to Find Yourself in the Middle of the Noise: Healing from Childhood Trauma by Sajida Haddad
- If I Could Tell You How It Feels by Alexis Rose (complex trauma)
- Liar, Liar by Laurie Katz (sexual assault)
- Overcoming Trauma and PTSD workbook by Sheela Raja
- Shattered by the Darkness by Gregory Williams (childhood sexual assault)
- The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
- Untangled by Alexis Rose (complex trauma)
- You Will Never Be Normal by Catherine Klatzker (dissociative identity disorder)
Therapy-Related Books
- A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Workbook by Bob Stahl & Elisha Goldstein
- Be Mighty by Jill A. Stoddard (acceptance and commitment therapy)
- Don’t Believe Everything You Feel by Robert L. Leahy (anxiety, depression)
- Escaping the Emotional Roller Coaster by Patricia Zurita Ona (ACT)
- Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life by Steven C. Hayes (ACT)
- The Healing Emotional Pain Workbook by Matthew McKay, Patrick Fanning, Erica Pool, and Patricia E. Zurita Ono (process-based CBT)
- Mindfulness for Insomnia by Catherine Polan Orzech and William H. Moorcroft
- Overcoming Avoidance Workbook by Daniel F. Gros (transdiagnostic behaviour therapy)
- Pocket Therapy by Sarah Crosby
- Pocket Therapy for Emotional Balance by Matthew McKay, Jeffrey C. Wood, and Jeffrey Brantley (DBTāemotional regulation)
- Secret Keeper by Marcia Kostoff
- Sh*t I Say to Myself by Katie Krimer (negative self-talk)
- Stop Avoiding Stuff by Matthew S. Boone, Jennifer Gregg, and Lisa W. Coyne (ACT)
- Super Simple CBT by Matthew McKay, Martha Davis, and Patrick Fanning
- The ACT Workbook for Anger by Robyn D. Walser and Manuela OāConnell
- The ACT Workbook for Perfectionism by Jennifer Kemp
- The Anxiety and Depression Workbook by Michael A. Tompkins (CBT)
- The Anxious Perfectionist by Clarissa W. Ong and Michael P. Twohig (ACT)
- The Dialectical Behavior Skills Workbook by Matthew McKay, Jeffrey C. Wood, and Jeffrey Brantley
- The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris (acceptance and commitment therapy)
- What Makes You Stronger by Louise L. Hayes, Joseph V. Ciarrochi, and Ann Bailey (acceptance and commitment therapy)
- When Life Hits Hard by Russ Harris (grief, acceptance and commitment therapy)
Other Books on Mental Illness
- ADHD 101: Parents Edition by Sandy Pace
- Good Reasons for Bad Feelings by Randolph Nesse (evolutionary psychiatry)
- Healing by Thomas Insel (mental health care system)
- I Died So I Could Live by Wendy Shipman (depression, trauma, recovery)
- I Will Not Be My Mental Illness by Karina Pommainville-Odell (recovery)
- It’s Ok to Not Be Ok by Kim Lamontagne (mental health anthology)
- Losing Our Minds: The Challenge of Defining Mental Illness by Lucy Foulkes
- On Mental Illness by The School of Life
- Reading Our Minds: The Rise of Big Data in Psychiatry by Daniel Barron
- Reflections: My Mad Memoirs! by Kristina Bryson (anxiety, humour)
- Safe: A Memoir by Elspeth Roake (trauma, attachment, self-harm)
- Safe, Wanted, and Loved by Patrick Dylan (bipolar, psychosis, stigma)
- Shame Ate My Soul by Susan Walz (misdiagnosis, benzo addiction, stigma)
- Strangers to Ourselves by Rachel Aviv
- The Silent Scream by Maria Alfieri (despair, suffering, and hope)
- Triumph by Trepanation by Nina Rabinowitz (depression, anxiety, brain tumour)
- The Unapologetic Guide to Black Mental Health by Rheeda Walker
- You Are Not Alone: The NAMI Guide to Navigating Mental Health by Ken Duckworth

Psychology & Wellness Book Reviews
- 52 Small Changes for the Mind by Brett Blumenthal
- A Fearless Heart by Thupten Jinpa (compassion)
- Be Kind by Melissa Burmester and Jaclyn Lindsey
- Blackness Interrupted: Black Psychology Matters by Nicól Osborne and Tamera Gittens
- Bright-Sided by Barbara Ehrenreich (toxic positivity)
- Calm the F*ck Down by Sarah Knight
- Collective Illusions by Todd Rose (social psychology)
- Decolonizing Wellness by Dalia Kinsey (QTBIPOC, body image, diet culture)
- Emotional Agility by Susan David
- From Hardened to Healed by Debi Silber (betrayal trauma)
- F*ck No by Sarah Knight (assertiveness)
- I Lost My Little Apricot by Melody Finch (miscarriage grief)
- Introducing Psychology: A Graphic Guide by Nigel C. Benson
- Mindful as F*ck by Emily Horn
- Mindfulness Workbook for Self-Love by Joel Black
- My Life in Lists by Nicole Barlettano
- My Wellness Toolbox by Alison Swift
- Nonviolent Communication by Marshall B. Rosenberg
- Overcoming Stress-Induced Brain Fog by Jill Weber
- Own It by Caroline ForanĀ (self-confidence)
- Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach
- Radical Compassion by Tara Brach
- Remember by Lisa Genova (memory)
- Resilient by Rick Hanson
- Self-Compassion by Kristin Neff
- Spite: The Upside of Your Dark Side by Simon McCarthy-Jones
- Stop Overthinking Your Relationship by Alicia MuƱoz
- The Better Boundaries Workbook by Sharon Martin
- The Black Woman’s Guide to Overcoming Domestic Violence by Shayonne J. Moore-Lobran and Robyn L. Gobin
- The Book of Joy by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu
- The Gifts of Imperfection by BrenƩ Brown
- The Gratitude Explorer Workbook by Kristi Nelson
- The Gratitude Project by Jeremy Adam Smith et al.
- The Handbook for Highly Sensitive People by Mel Collins
- The Happiness Diary by Barbara A. Kipfer
- The Illustrated Book of Mindful Meditations for Mindless Moments by Courtney E. Ackerman
- The Introvert Advantage by Marti Olsen Laney
- The Jackass Whisperer by Scott and Alison Stratten
- The More or Less Definitive Guide to Self-Care by Anna Borges
- The Night the Lights Went Out by Drew Magary (traumatic brain injury memoir)
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
- This Book Will Make You Fall Asleep from Andrews McMeel Publishing
- Unmasking Autism by Devon Price
- Wherever You Go There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn
- You, Happier by Daniel G. Amen
- Your Brain, Explained by Marc Dingman
- Your Wellness Toolbox by Ali Swift

Miscellaneous Non-Fiction
- 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari
- Born a Crime by Trevor Noah (memoir, apartheid)
- Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson (humour, memoir, depression)
- Musings on the Murky Dating and Relationships Terrain by Marie Abanga (memoir)
- Quack Quack: The Threat of Pseudoscience by Joe Schwarcz
- White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo (racism)
- You Donāt Look Sick by Kristen Dutkiewicz (multiple sclerosis)
Poetry
- All She Wrote by Paula Light
- Bottled Memories by David Ritter (addiction & recovery)
- I Am the Architect of My Own Destruction by Juansen Dizon
- My Heart’s Song by Maria Pratico
- Swinging Sanity by N.F. Mirza
Fiction
- All the Lights Above Us by M.B. Henry
- Inside of Me by Wendy Shipman (mental health fiction)
- The Balance Between Life and Death by Elizabeth Holland (mental health fiction)
- The Vintage Bookshop of Memories by Elizabeth Holland (fiction)
- Novels by Melody Finch: the Learners at Love series
- Novels by Paula Light
- Fiona’s Fling, written as Anna Fondant (romance)
- Ghosted: Disappearing Acts
- Switching Positions (political romantic comedy)

Where to Find Free Books
Reading is a wonderful thing. Even if money is tight, that doesn’t have to get in the way of reading. Here are a few ways to get your read on for free.

- Your local public library, which may be connected to the Libby or Hoopla Digital apps
- Bookbub: has a selection of books that are available free for a limited time offer
- Free-eBooks.net: members can access 5 free books a month
- Indie Book Lounge: books by indie authors
- Open Culture: a collection of classic fiction and nonfiction
- Open Library is part of the Internet Archive system
- Project Gutenberg: offers classics that are no longer restricted by copyright
- Standard Ebooks: a collection of books in the public domain