Bibliotherapy: Can reading help treat your depression?

Whether they’re turning to fiction to nurse a broken heart or seeking guidance on self-betterment from an inspiring memoir, people have sought solace in literature for centuries. Books can act as the perfect dose of escapism from the hurdles of everyday life – and bibliotherapy is all about tapping into books’ therapeutic power.

Bibliotherapy, as the name suggests, is a form of therapy that utilises literature, storytelling or poetry to improve mental health and overall well-being. As aforementioned, while books have offered readers guidance since time immemorial, the first recorded use of the term “bibliotherapy” is usually traced back to a satirical article published in the The Atlantic Monthly in 1916. There, writer Samuel McChord Crothers discusses the new therapy with his friend ‘Dr Bagster‘. “A book may be a stimulant or a sedative or an irritant or a soporific. The point is that it must do something to you, and you ought to know what it is,” Bagster tells the writer. He suggests that a “comfortable” middle-aged client with “opinions partially ossified” ought to read “more novels” (though the article was published over a century ago, this still sounds like good advice).

Today, bibliotherapy involves meeting with a trained bibliotherapist (a book doctor, if you will) to discuss goals, life struggles, and how books can be helpful for progression. The session is uniquely followed by a “book prescription”, which outlines a reading list to help process and better understand the issues discussed. Each book prescription is tailored to help clients understand emotions, gain insight, and discover new perspectives. The overall goal is to provide comfort from the aspects of life that can sometimes be too heavy and blinding to process alone. It is a mechanism for making sense of challenging situations and finding reassurance for various situational triggers.

It’s the art of giving the right book at the right time to the right person

Ella Berthoud has been a bibliotherapist since 2007. She regularly hosts courses on the practice and offers one-on-one sessions. Speaking to Dazed, she describes bibliotherapy as the pratice of prescribing fiction to cure life ailments. “It’s the art of giving the right book at the right time to the right person,” she says, adding that she believes that issues like anxiety, depression, divorce, navigating childbirth and worrying about climate change can be alleviated through literature as putting words to a once indescribable feeling can help actualise the the validity of a reader’s own experience. While she occasionally prescribes non-fiction to her clients, Berthoud largely prescribes fiction due to her belief that this genre energises the subconscious and leads to a transformation from within.

Berthoud explains that although clients may come to her to tackle specific issues, like grief, they may crave contrasting storylines to heal this battle. “Sometimes people going through grief and loss might want a novel that touches the nerve in which someone passes away and processes that experience; other times, they may want to be distracted and read something that’s purely escapist,” she shares. It’s about creating a curated list of suitable recommendations that resonate with specific people and their preferences by tuning in to a client’s situation and personality to curate their prescription accordingly.

To achieve this consensus, a questionnaire is often distributed before a session which assesses a client’s reading preferences. It allows clients to provide a sense of likes and dislikes and allows the bibliotherapist to better gauge their inclinations. Described as both intuitive and collaborative by Berthoud, the one-on-one session unlocks a personal look at what stories would be best suited to each individual client. Reading about three books a week, Berthoud is an encyclopedia of literary knowledge and is well-placed to deliver the right formula for positive transformation.

Emely Rumble, a psychotherapist and decolonial literature-based therapist, likes the practice’s accessibility, affordability and adaptability. In her eyes, bibliotherapy is simple and doesn’t require complex tools or techniques. From the humble nooks of a public library, it can offer a beacon of hope or a lesson in empathy.

She shares that whether through fiction, memoirs, poetry or self-help, reading is a healing tool that can help process emotions, gain insight into experiences and discover new perspectives. “At its heart, it’s about finding healing and growth in stories, which has been part of human culture for centuries,” she says. “Whether in times of joy or struggle, literature provides us with connection, understanding and hope.” She’s right: in ancient civilisations, literature was used as a form of moral and emotional guidance, with works from Plato and Socrates were often used to build morale and strengthen worldview. Bibliotherapy, then, is simply a continuation of this centuries-old exercise.

Inspired by her personal experiences, Rumble is set to publish Bibliotherapy in the Bronx in April 2025. This book explores how literature can be a transformational tool, especially in marginalised communities, which Rumble has witnessed first-hand throughout her 14 years as a therapist. Acting as a professional guide, it offers practical ways for therapists, educators, and readers to integrate reading as a form of healing.

Rumble advocates for the amalgamation of creative arts into traditional psychotherapy. This push is grounded in the idea that creative and expressive arts return us to the self and encourage the quest of finding and exercising our voice. “The expressive and creative arts have succeeded in helping people reduce stress and feel more centred,” she says. “These practices offer alternative ways to connect to one’s inner self that do not require immediate access to financial resources.”

Lucy Pearson, a freelance writer, bibliotherapist and library curator at The Literary Edit, helps people find healing, comfort, motivation or inspiration by suggesting stories that fit different circumstances or life stages. “Bibliotherapy can help people feel comforted, understood, and inspired,” she says. “It’s great for easing anxiety, seeing things from a new perspective, or even just finding joy in reading again.” She describes bibliotherapists as personal shoppers but for books. Through her practice, sessions can sometimes take an unconventional approach: aside from providing healing, they can also help clients become readers by sharing tips on building the habit or offering insight on making more time for it.

But what draws her to the practice is the personal connection it ignites. “For me, it’s about sharing the magic of reading and helping people find what they need in the pages of a book,” she says. “It’s about finding that storyline or narrative that finds the reader at exactly the right time to guide and lead them in the right direction.”