Ask HN: What books have you found understandable during serious depression? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: What books have you found understandable during serious depression?

17 pointsbookofjoe14 comments

I've had four episodes of major depression in my life, the last and longest lasting 1.75 years, during which I was pretty much non-functional and unable to concentrate enough to read.

Through trial and error I stumbled on two things that WERE readable and provided much comfort.

1. Patrick O'Brian's "Master and Commander" and its twenty sequels set during the Napoleonic Wars, featuring British naval captain Jack Aubrey and his ship's surgeon, Stephen Maturin.

2. "The Goldfinch" by Donna Tartt.

I wish I'd known of more such books at the time.

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I tried to read Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays during an episode of major depression, thinking I’d appreciate the message, but it was too dense given the circumstances.

What I did finish, and what ended up becoming one of my favorite books, is Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams. He traveled around the world with a biologist to find endangered animals. It’s a funny and life-affirming book.

I’m not sure if it’s relevant but I cured my depression by reading the primary source of the most effective treatment method. I found it reassuring and easy to read:

https://beckinstitute.org/cbt-resources/resources-for-profes...

After finishing that, there is also a new recovery-oriented therapy from them -it’s about finding interests and then finding some dream/goal to pursue. There is a story of treating the guy who thought he is god and was giving away everything: even his food https://www.amazon.com/Recovery-Oriented-Cognitive-Therapy-S...

Goldfinch is one of my favorites, so let me chime in as I’ve read during serious depression and understand the struggle.

- tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow

- 1Q84

- After Dark

- secret history (author of goldfinch)

- never let me go (bit sad-ish)

Note: I explicitly filtered my reads to be things I enjoyed during depressive states. Lots of other books I read during that period I didn’t enjoy/made depression worse

If I can tack onto this, "Hard-boiled Wonderland" by Murakami was one of the most fun and engaging books I've read in the last decade.

OP, I apologize as it doesn't quite answer your question but I discovered this article [0] many years after going through what I later identified as a series of depressive episodes. I revisit it every so often to remind myself that even in those moments, life is worth the weight of your efforts.

Longform articles notwithstanding, do you have any interest in audiobooks? I recall Moby Dick filling a similar role.

[0] https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2005/10/lincoln...

FWIW, I was super unhappy about work some years ago. I decided to start reading some books from college that were recommended by my professors. These were books that I didn’t value at the time. I read these, and then read the books cited in their bibliographies. Rinse and repeat.

Also, at the same time I heard an NPR program where a professor would write a book review of every book he read.

I combined these two things and started having a nice collection of short writing.

Slowly, over time, my crap thoughts were replaced by a host of other much better ideas, slowly steered by my new practice of writing.

I reread Ursula K LeGuin's Earthsea Trilogy during a really difficult time in my life. I hadn't read them since I was a teenager. They are simple to read, but deep, with themes of regret and hopelessness but also perseverance and grace. I find her attitude toward her characters to be both brutally honest and compassionate. I think I got more out of reading these books as an adult at that time, although they were among my favorite books as a kid.

When my SO died, I was severely depressed for a few years. A Grief Observed helped me a lot in my recovery.

"Making Movies" by Sidney Lumet was really helpful for me in a few different ways. I think it should be required reading for anyone creating with a team.

Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

I don't know why, but the first part always manages to give me enough context to reassess my situation.

"When things fall apart" - Pema Chodron

Love is A Dog From Hell by Charles Bukowski

Anatomy of melancholy

Nietzsche.

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