You know how your favorite book or person spirals into existential dread and makes you think that the hopelessness you feel in any given moment can extend to forever and you'll be left with…staring into the void? Anybody?
Well…I'm sure you see the problem. I tend to absorb the emotions of whatever media or people are near me and start treating them like they are my own. It's a great skill, but seeing as I'm a therapist and I've been on a horror binge I am recognizing darkly existential, anxious, or straight out depressed patterns after a good therapy session or read. I used to be dark and bubbly!
Ideally, I'm looking for a book that will give me that bubbly back, one that still has deep themes, but themes and events that center around hope and excitement. Or a character that remains extremely hopeful through the story (see Sora from Kingdom Hearts? Or any JRPG protag ever). To clarify, I wouldn't want a book that is depressing the entire ride just to find some hope at the end.
I lean more towards experimental and poetic type writing/structure (see Helen Oyeyemi) but I don't mind a straight forward horror or mystery here and there.
There are really only two types of books I won't read: books that are solely or primarily romance novels and self-help books. Other than that I'm open to fiction or non-fiction.
Sorry for all the info, I see others complain people never give enough info when asking for a rec. Thanks in advance!
by Brief-Leader-6120