Spring has officially sprung, summer is well on the way and seasonal depression is mostly behind us, which can only mean one thing: it’s time for a little reinvention. And what better way to become the best version of yourself other than with a trusty self-help book?
Mental health has become a mainstream conversation especially among Gen Z and millennials who are advocates for speaking about their feelings. We’re curious, self-aware and constantly trying to improve and figure out why we are the way we are. But while therapy is still the gold standard, it isn’t always within reach.
NHS counselling waitlists can stretch for months and private sessions rarely cost less than £60 an hour. No wonder self-help literature is booming. Between TikTok therapists and Instagram life coaches, there’s no shortage of advice, but knowing where to start can be overwhelming.
So whether you’re after a spiritual guide, trauma-informed guidance, a boost in positivity or help debunking your attachment style, here are seven books that are cheaper than therapy and might just change your life in the process.
All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks (1999)
It might not sit in the self-help section, but few books have helped me more. In All About Love, bell hooks redefines how we think about love and not just the romantic kind. Written more than two decades ago, hooks argues that by shifting our focus to the love we find in friendships, family, our passions or even the mundane, we can lead fuller, happier lives. It’s not a how-to manual, but more of an eye opener and sometimes that’s the help we really need.
101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think by Brianna Wiest (2018)
The title says it all. Brianna Wiest’s collection of essays, lists and advice encourages you to reflect on your mindset, patterns, passions and the uncomfortable truth that the biggest thing standing in your way might be, spoiler alert: you. It’s not a cover-to-cover binge read as some parts get repetitive, but in a way, that’s part of the process. Therapy is repetitive too, until suddenly it starts to stick. Get your highlighters at the ready as this is one for making notes.
Atomic Habits by James Clear (2018)
If you’re after sympathy, Atomic Habits is not for you. Drawing on psychology, biology and neuroscience, James Clear provides a framework that makes good habits stick and bad ones harder to fall back on. A practical, straight-talking guide to getting your life in order and not through grand gestures, but through small, repeatable actions. It’s not quite therapy and it’s definitely not CBT, but it will make you rethink your routines and realise the little steps to get you to where you want to be.
Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find and Keep Love by Amir Levine and Rachel Heller (2010)
It’s no secret that a lot of who we are comes down to how we were raised especially when it comes to love. In Attached, psychiatrist and neuroscientist Amir Levine, and psychologist Rachel SF Heller explore the psychology of adult attachment styles and how your earliest bonds shape the way you perceive and behave in relationships today. It doesn’t claim to fix you, but it does help you recognise your patterns (or your partners’) – the ones that make you clingy, distant, or play around in relationships. If you’ve ever asked yourself “why am I like this?” mid-text spiral, this one’s for you.
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk (2014)
This is the book for anyone who wants to understand how trauma manifests itself in the body, not just the mind. Psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk draws on decades of research to show how trauma reshapes the brain and nervous system and how practices like movement, EMDR, and mindfulness can help us heal. An international bestseller with over three million copies sold, it both normalises the experience of trauma and offers hope for healing it.
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before by Julie Smith (2022)
From TikTok to Sunday Times bestseller, Julie Smith (a trained psychiatrist) brings her mental health expertise into this accessible, no-nonsense guide. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? highlights the power of simple practices like identifying your emotions more clearly or journaling to understand yourself better. It might sound obvious, but it’s effective. Often described as a “mental health toolbox”, this book allows you to skip straight to the chapter you need, whether it’s dealing with grief, managing stress or help finding meaning in life.
The Power of Now: The Global Phenomenon: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle (1997)
A modern spiritual classic, The Power of Now is all about learning to live in the present and why that matters more than you think. Drawing from various spiritual traditions, teacher and lecturer Eckhart Tolle reveals how letting go of the ego, past stress and future anxieties can lead to inner peace. In a world wired for stress and distraction, this book is a reminder to slow down, breathe and truly live in the moment. Loved by millions, including Oprah Winfrey who called it “one of the most valuable books I’ve ever read”, it might just help you unlock a new sense of gratitude.
The boom in health memoirs and what they can tell us about being human
Author Emma Jane Unsworth: ‘Women are encouraged to feel ashamed of our fantasies’
What to read this May from a superb debut novel to a five-star biography
Elif Shafak: ‘As a writer in Turkey, you can find yourself almost digitally lynched’
Inside the mind of Joan Didion: The strangest and saddest book you will read all year
How a law made to stop child abduction is being weaponised against abused mothers
