Bookshelf

Literature can be incredibly healing, validating, and informative. Here is a collected list of books I recommend for healing, self-exploration, and growth.

Highly Sensitive People and Empaths

The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You by Elaine Aron
Brain Training for the Highly Sensitive Person by Julie Bjelland
Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn’t Designed for You by Jenara Nereberg
Sensitive Is the New Strong: The Power of Empaths in an Increasingly Harsh World by Anita Moorjani
Highly Sensitive People in an Insensitive World: How to Create a Happy Life by Ilse Sand
The Empowered Highly Sensitive Person: How To Harness Your Sensitivity In A Chaotic World by Julie Bjelland
The Highly Sensitive Person in Love: Understanding and Managing Relationships When the World Overwhelms You by Elaine Aron
Thrill: The High Sensation Seeking Highly Sensitive Person by Tracy M. Cooper
The Power of Sensitivity by Ted Zeff
The Empath’s Survival Guide by Dr. Judith Orloff (see my book review here.)

Introversion

The Introvert Advantage: How Quiet People Can Thrive in an Extrovert World by Marti Olsen Laney
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Quiet Girl in a Noisy World by Debbie Tung (see my book review here.)

Social Justice, Liberation, and Activism

How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship, and Community by Mia Birdsong
The Body Is Not An Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love by Sonya Renee Taylor
What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Audrey Gordon
Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good by adrienne maree brown
How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
Queering Sexual Violence: Radical Voices from Within the Anti-Violence Movement edited by Jennifer Patterson
Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change by Angela Garbes

Attachment & Relationships

Set Boundaries, Find Peace: A Guide to Reclaiming Yourself by Nedra Glover Tawwab
Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find – and Keep – Love by Amir Levine and Rachel Heller
Deeper Dating: How to Drop the Games of Seduction and Discover the Power of Intimacy by Ken Page
Friendshipping: The Art of Finding Friends, Being Friends, and Keeping Friends
You Are the One You’ve Been Waiting For: Bringing Courageous Love To Intimate Relationships by Richard Schwartz
Conscious Lesbian Dating & Love: A Roadmap to Finding the Right Partner and Creating the Relationship of your Dreams by Ruth L. Schwartz and Michelle Murrain

Soul Work & Creativity

Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon
The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
Forest Therapy: Seasonal Ways To Embrace Nature for a Happier You
Eating in the Light of the Moon: How Women Can Transform Their Relationship with Food Through Myths, Metaphors, and Storytelling
Care of the Soul by Thomas Moore
Women Who Run with the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

Productivity & Personal Development

Professional Troublemaker: The Fear-Fighter Manual by Luvvie Ajayi Jones
The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Live To The Next Level by Gay Hendricks
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
The Four Tendencies: The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How To Make Your Life Better (And Other People’s Lives Better, Too) by Gretchen Rubin

Trauma Recovery

No Bad Parts: Healing Trauma and Restoring Wholeness with the Internal Family Systems Model by Richard Schwartz
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving: A Guide and Map for Recovering from Childhood Trauma by Pete Walker
Trauma Recovery Handbook for Survivors by Rachel Walker
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van de Kolk
Transgender Sexual Violence Survivors: A Self Help Guide to Healing and Understanding by FORGE (e-book)
The Queer and Transgender Resilience Workbook by Anneliese Singh