10 Touching Books For When You Need A Good Cry
Photo by Amine
“If you have tears, prepare to shed them now.”
Some days, nothing can make you feel better until you’ve had a good cry. On the surface, this may seem counterintuitive, but it turns out there’s a good reason why those tears are so therapeutic.
Scientists say that crying removes stress and toxins from your body and replaces them with endorphins, the happy hormones. So the next time you need to get the tears flowing, consider reaching for one of these books.
01 | Nothing Else But Miracles by Kate Albus
If you’ve never heard of Kate Albus, allow me the pleasure of introducing you. Albus writes pure gold for middle grade readers, their parents, and anyone who enjoys a good story.
In Nothing Else But Miracles, twelve-year-old Dory Byrne and her two brothers must rely on their own ingenuity and the goodwill of their New York City neighborhood when their father is drafted to fight in World War II.
Though the subject matter is heavy at times, Albus knows just when to lighten the mood with humor and when to wring your heart with the emotion of the moment. Both the story and the writing are practically perfect in every way.
02 | Rilla of Ingleside by L. M. Montgomery
Following the grown children of literature’s favorite redhead, Anne Shirley Blythe, this novel is a coming-of-age tale set during World War 1. While the Blythe sons go off to war, the rest of the family is left to grapple with the challenges of the Canadian home front during wartime.
Through both loves and losses, Rilla outgrows the frivolous cares of girlhood and matures into a responsible, thoughtful, and selfless young woman. She is especially close to her brother Walter, and the conversations and letters they exchange are some of the book’s most poignant.
03 | This Beautiful Truth by Sarah Clarkson
Sarah Clarkson is one of those writers whose way with words could probably move me to tears no matter what the topic. In This Beautiful Truth, Clarkson tackles mental health and recounts her own struggle with OCD.
In raw and honest prose, she wrestles with God’s goodness and how we can reconcile that goodness with the vast brokenness of the world. Her conclusion? That both beauty and brokenness tell a story about God, but the story of beauty is true.
04 | Daring to Hope by Katie Davis Majors
At the age of 18, Majors went to Uganda for a mission trip. She soon relocated to the country, founded Amazima Ministries, and adopted thirteen girls. Talk about a whirlwind!
In the early years of her ministry, God poured out his blessings with fast growth and miraculous stories. But when growth slowed, prayers were unanswered, and she experienced loss after loss, Majors wrestled with God’s goodness and whether she could place her hope in Him. With deep vulnerability, she lays bare her heart in this moving memoir of doubt and faith.
05 | The Wonderful Things You Will Be by Emily Winfield Martin
The world is full of possibilities, and this imaginative picture book celebrates the unique potential in every child. With whimsical rhymes and illustrations, The Wonderful Things You WIll Be assures children that unconditional love will follow them no matter who they grow up to be. It’s sure to tug the heartstrings of parents, grandparents, caregivers, and teachers everywhere.
06 | The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis
Part of C.S. Lewis’ beloved Chronicles of Narnia, The Silver Chair follows two children, Eustace Clarence Scrubb (a name he almost deserved) and Jill Pole, on their quest to find and rescue Prince Rilian, heir to the Narnian throne.
Along the way, the children befriend magical creatures and slay the evil Queen of the Underland, but it’s the novel’s last chapter that always brings me to tears. In it, Lewis depicts the death of Rilian’s father, King Caspian. The scene is tender and heart-breaking in all the best ways, and the pictures Lewis paints of heaven and of God stir love and longing in my heart as few other things have. It’s why he’s a true master.
07 | Once Upon A Wardrobe by Patti Callahan
Speaking of C. S. Lewis, Patti Callahan Henry has written several novels based on his life. In Once Upon a Wardrobe, we meet Megs Devonshire, a math scholar at Oxford, and her eight-year-old brother George, who has a rapidly failing heart. George, an avid fan of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, asks his sister to find out where Narnia came from.
This request precipitates a friendship between Megs and Lewis. Each time they meet, Lewis gives Megs a story to take home to George, but he never seems to answer George’s question outright. Once Upon a Wardrobe is the perfect cozy novel to curl up with, just make sure to have your hanky nearby.
08 | Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling
WARNING: Spoilers ahead!
I’ll be honest, this book completely wrecked me the first time I read it. I had half a mind to not read another book J. K. Rowling. Thankfully, that urge only lasted about an hour. Order of the Phoenix is the fifth installment in the Harry Potter series.
Orphaned as an infant and raised by an aunt and uncle who despise him, readers first meet eleven-year-old Harry when he discovers that he is a wizard. Two years (and books) later, Harry learns he has a godfather, Sirius Black, the brave yet somewhat reckless escaped convict wrongfully accused of betraying Harry’s parents. Over the next two years, Harry and Sirius develop a sweet bond, and Harry finally has a loving and protective parent-figure in his life.
That makes Sirius’s death doubly cruel. But Rowling doesn’t leave us without hope. The closing scene is another tear-jerker. Harry’s “found family”—his friends, professors, and allies—surround him and pledge their help and fidelity as he inches ever closer to war with the evil Voldemort.
09 | Good Enough: 40ish Devotionals for a Life of Imperfection by Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie
Life isn’t perfect. It is—to borrow from another of Bowler’s books—both beautiful and terrible. But too often we glaze over the terrible. We don’t like to dwell on it because it makes us uncomfortable and because, well, it’s terrible.
In both the church and the culture-at-large, there’s a sense of forced positivity. I can't be the only one who remembers the Sunday School song “I’m inright, outright, upright, downright happy all the time!”
The truth of life, however, is that none of us are happy all the time. We have bad days; we feel lonely, exhausted, and disappointed; we experience tragedy, grief, and loss. And sometimes, if we’re honest enough to admit it, God seems distant, absent, or unfair. I spent many a morning during one of my own dark seasons weeping over the words in this book. It was a balm to my soul.
10 | The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones and illustrated by Jago
Don’t be fooled, this picture Bible is not just for children. In both word and illustration, it captures a sense of beauty and wonder that appeals to young and old alike.
Lloyd-Jones has done a superb job adapting the larger story of Scripture without making you feel like you're reading a theological tome to your preschooler. Many of the retellings have reduced me to tears, but the last one is especially a doozy.
Bonus: Supper of the Lamb by Robert Farrar Capon
This last recommendation is a slight change of pace. While it did bring tears to my eyes, they were tears of laughter, which can be equally as healing.
Supper of the Lamb is part cookbook, part opportunity for Capon to wax eloquent on all topics culinary. Together, the two parts create a culinary reflection that is wholly delightful.
