7 Best Feel-Good Books To Help You Find Hope During Darkest of Times | HappinessDhaba

We all have days when we feel like all odds are against us. And these are the days when we feel like showing the white flag and burying our heads in a pillow.

While we should always try to look on the brighter side and try picking ourselves up again. But the brutal truth is that bouncing back when we’re down is easier said than done.

However, when it comes to me, books have been my panacea for everything.

Books have a way of engaging the audience, opening our minds, and providing an entirely new perspective on life.

So with this thought in mind, today we have come up with a list of ultrapractical, feel-good books to help you find hope.

Here they are:

#1: Reasons To Stay Alive by Matt Haig

There is no standard normal. Normal is subjective. There are seven billion versions of normal on this planet.

This book is the true story about how  Matt Haig, the author, overcame the depression that had almost annihilated him and learned the “Art of living” again.

Heart-rending and inspiriting both at the same time, it is not just a book, It is a ray of hope for the low-spirited humans. It’s a book about making the most of our time on Earth.

Being someone, who has experienced depression, I can undoubtedly say, this is the rawest content on depression I have ever come across.

Each word of this book is as true as it can get.
It’s one of those books that can make everyone feel good irrespective of their position on the happiness spectrum.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#2: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown

My favorite takeaway from this one is: To Show Up 

In the words of Brene Brown, 

When we spend our lives waiting until we’re perfect or bulletproof before we walk into the arena, we ultimately sacrifice relationships and opportunities that may not be recoverable, we squander our precious time, and we turn our backs on our gifts.

If you feel low about yourself, constantly have this urge to prove yourself to others, or are someone who is interested in becoming a better human, then you must not miss the works of Brene Brown. The research she puts in while covering a topic is really commendable.

We, humans, are taught to link vulnerability to weakness.
Whenever we are faced with an unexpected change, vulnerability hits us, and it’s accompanied by a feeling of guilt.

Because in our society,

“Vulnerability is equated to Weakness”

This book completely shatters this orthodox perspective and presents a completely new perspective on Vulnerability and Shame. It encourages us to embrace vulnerability and hence create a shame fee zone (feel-good zone) for ourselves and for people around us.

It’s a book about how having the courage to be vulnerable can transform the way we live, love, parent, and lead.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#3: Notes on a nervous planet by Matt Haig

Happiness is not good for the economy.
We are encouraged, continually, to be a little bit dissatisfied with ourselves

Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig talks about how in the world of information overload, we are encouraged to worry about everything from World Politics to our BMI.

Also, he talks about the severe effects that Consumerism and excessive use of technology have had on our Mental Health. Matt, who has experienced years of depression and Panic attacks suggests how to be happy in a world full of clutter.

Reading this one is like listening to everything from the horse’s mouth.

The reason I love Matt Haig’s books is because of their relativeness and rawness. For people like me, who have had 1st hand experience of Depression, Matt’s books have always been a source of Hope and this is no exception.

Here, I am sharing a powerful quote from this beautiful book,

The problem is not that the world is a mess, but that we expect it to be otherwise.

Also Read: Best Books on Leaning the Art of Songwriting

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#4: The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris

Here are my favorite words from this book,

Having negative thoughts and feelings means I’m a normal human being.

This book by Russ Harris busts one of the biggest myths of our time that, If we’re not happy, we are defective.
That’s the biggest myth because Pain and struggle are normal. Everyone experiences them. But still, the society we live in considers these emotions as negative and encourages us to hide them.

Another good thing about this book is that it not only highlights the problems but also shows us the way to escape the Psychological Trap of Happiness, we all have confined ourselves into,
It introduces us to the technique of ACT,

A= Accept your Thoughts
C= Connect with your values
T= Take effective Actions

Thus encouraging us to direct our energy mainly into our Actions.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#5: The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown

From the pen of author Brene Brown, this book inspires us into how we can cultivate the courage to embrace our imperfections.
There is so much so-called guidance floating around from society and the media, on what is correct and what is not.

The result is that we are forced to believe that perfection is the only right way of doing things. This book completely shatters these thoughts.
In very clear words, it teaches us to,

Let go of who you think, you are supposed to be and embrace who you are.

It reminds us that we are the protagonist of our lives and we are free to devise our own way of doing things.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#6: Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy by David D. Burns

Through this book, David D. Burns, an eminent psychiatrist suggests some of the remarkable, scientifically proven techniques to fill the black holes that depression creates.

It’s the first book that explains Cognitive Therapy to the general public.  The cognitive approach assumes that changes in thinking precede the onset of depression, thus depression is something that results from systematic negative bias in thinking.

For anyone, who is new to Cognitive therapy, this book is truly very informative.

Here is my favorite takeaway from the book,

Labeling yourself is not only self-defeating, but it is also irrational. Your self cannot be equated with any one thing you do. Your life is a complex and ever-changing flow of thoughts, emotions, and actions. To put it another way, you are more like a river than a statue. Stop trying to define yourself with negative labels.

You are more like a river than a statue.

If you are truly feeling low, these words must have distorted some of your beliefs and given you Hope.

 And, that’s the best thing about this book, it exposes the distortions in our brain and gives us Hope. It’s a book to be read and re-read.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

#7: Veronica Decides To Die by Paulo Coelho

Here inside, everyone can say what they like, do what they want, without being criticized, after all, they are in a mental hospital.

It’s a beautiful tale of a young woman Veronica, who has everything that an ordinary human craves for. Despite all that, she is not happy and feels she is living an unfulfilled and meaningless life and is worried that this feeling will only get worse as she gets older.

In search of her freedom, she decides to terminate her life. In a dramatic turn of events that follow, she ends up in a mental hospital where she is told that the sleeping pills she took have cut short her life span and she would die in a few days.

Awaiting her doomsday, she meets people who completely change her perspective towards life and ignite in her a desire to repossess her life. These people further help her discover versions of herself, she was never aware of. 

In her words, 

When I took the pills, I wanted to kill someone I hated. I didn’t know that other Veronikas existed inside me, Veronikas that I could love.

This book by Paulo Coelho is perfectly calibrated to infuse you with hope during the darkest of times.

Grab your copy Here ― Amazon.in | Amazon.com

The Best Books:
Recommended Reading Lists

1. Best Books That Teach the Art of Living a HAPPIER LIFE
2. Best Books on STOCK MARKET & INVESTING
3. Best Books To Help You Develop the HABIT of READING
4. Best Books on Leaning the Art of Songwriting

That’s all we have for today. Thanks a lot for tuning in to HappinessDhaba. Do let me know your views on these in the comment section. And, don’t forget to add more to the list.

Signing off with my favorite words.

Zindagi Zindabad!

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Jasmeet SinghPsychologist | Engineer | Reader | Blogger

An Engineer-Turned-Psychologist who loves Literature.
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