The title says it all — fiction or nonfiction, I'm looking for books that might resonate with people who have been overachievers but are now struggling with the pressure of perfectionism and failure, leading to anxiety or depression.
Please no books by Matt Haig 🙂
by mariastringini
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The Magicians by Lev Grossman. This is a major theme of the books.
When breath becomes air by Paul kalanithi (he’s a surgeon, gets cancer, and can’t finish residency/fellowship…I have mixed feelings about this book but it does illustrate the struggle)
Old school by Tobias Wolff
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfield
It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
Charlotte Illes is Not a Detective by Katie Siegel. The main character was a kid detective and now struggling as an adult. And even though the kid detective bit isn’t relatable her struggles as an adult 100% are. I was actually surprised at how much I felt like I related to the main character given that I picked it up because it felt like a fun sort of silly premise.
Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. It was all about this decades before it was cool. It is dated in its language (by that I mean there are a few racist sentences).
You’ll get through this night by Dan howell