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There’s nothing like getting lost in a deep, emotional book. Today I’m sharing 5 books to give you “the feels“!
Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry (you’ve been warned), but all of these will make you marvel at humanity. Through adversity, mental illness, and trauma, kindness saves people. Kindness brings people together, and I think we all need a bit more of it right now.
5 Emotional Books To Give You “The Feels”
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Never Let Me Go follows the lives of a student group, growing up in twisted version of England. The narrator, Kathy, is now 31 years old, and attempts to understand her childhood.
This book emphasises the fragile nature of life, with a story of love, memories, and friendship.
Ishiguro is a brilliant writer, it’s no surprise that he won a Nobel Prize! I need to read more of his books!
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
Based on the true story of Lale Sokolov, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is a must-read.
It’s not surprising that 4 million copies have sold worldwide. If you’ve read Schindler’s List or The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, you’ll need to read this one too.
Lale Sokolov was assigned the role of tattooing Auschwitz prisoners marked for survival. He met a young girl waiting in line, and for him, it was love at first sight. He became determined to survive alongside her.
Absolutely heartbreaking and moving, The Tattooist of Auschwitz highlights the kindness of humanity in the worst circumstance you could be in: the Holocaust.
Nina is Not OK by Shappi Khorsandi
I won a copy of Nina is Not OK in a Penguin book bundle competition a few years ago. I hadn’t heard of it before, but I loved it!
This one will make you laugh – Shappi Khorsandi is a comedian after all!
Nina, aged 17, “does not have a drinking problem”. Her Mum, however, thinks she does. She wakes up sometimes with very few memories of the night before, and her drunken adventures become legendary at college.
One morning, Nina wakes up with a sense of shame, and that something bad has happened, but she and her friends can’t remember.
Until We Are Free by Dr Shirin Ebadi
After reading I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai, I wanted to read more about individuals making a difference across the globe. If you haven’t read I Am Malala, I definitely recommend it (read my review), as well as Greta Thunberg’s ‘No One is Too Small to Make a Difference’.
Until We Are Free tells Dr Shirin Ebadi’s fight for reform in Iran, and the backlash she received after winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Shirin became a global voice of inspiration, yet her own life was filled with violence and surveillance. Eventually, she was forced into exile, and her family were detained.
Dr Shirin Ebadi is an astounding woman, and I highly recommend reading this story of hope in adversity.
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
The final book in my list of 5 Books To Give You “The Feels” is by Celeste Ng. Her writing is deep, devastating, and emotional.
Everything I Never Told You tells the story of Lydia, the favourite child in her family. Her parents are certain that she’ll pursue the dreams they were unable to: becoming a doctor, and popular in school.
Lydia is under other pressures: her Chinese ethnicity in 1970’s Ohio. Her body is found in a local lake, leading her father to become consumed with guilt and potentially destroy his marriage. Lydia’s older brother, Nathan, is convinced he knows who was involved. However, it is her observant younger sister, Hannah, who potentially knows the truth.
Have you read any of these books? Let me know which books give you “the feels”!
If you’re looking for more book recommendations, check out my Books category.
Stay safe at home.
All the best,
I love books that take you on an emotional journey and then leave you with that bookish hangover, the only problem is that it takes me a while to want to start the next book. A great list!
I am always looking for new books to add to my list. Never let me go sounds like it would be an amazing read for sure x
I’m not usually a fan of sad books but I read never let you go ages ago and really liked it! Not keen on the film though
Everything I never told you is one of my favourites:) will look into the others as I’ve not read them ones
I find myself reading a lot more in the last few months, adding a couple of your books into my reading list especially The Tattooist of Auschwitz as I love true stories and this looks like my kind of book.
One of my friends has read The Tattoist and she told me she thought it was a great read too!
The Tattooist of Auschwitz has been on my to read list for ages, but Nina is not okay sounds like my kind of book as well x
What a brilliant selection of books, I haven’t read any of them. I particularly love the look of until we are free, that sounds like something I would definitely be interested in.
My wife is a big reader and has read lots this year, especially with everything thats gone on, i will recommend these to her.
Such wonderful books! I like to read them all, but I think the first one I want is the book “Everything I Never Told You.” Thanks for your book recommendations. i will have to find copies for these. Hopefully, there would be a Kindle version too.
These sound like some interesting books, I have heard from a few of them, but not others, I have to use audiobooks these days so might have to see what I can find for them!
Ooh I haven’t heard of any of these, they all sound good! Shappi is funny though, she is great!
Oh I love a good selection of book recommendations. These all sound great. I have just bought the tattooist of Auschwitz and everything I never told you so I am really looking forward to reading those now.
Thanks for sharing x