In my teens, I felt like I needed to read sad books just to feel human. (Dramatic, as any lover of sad books probably is, eh?)
I’d spent a lot of time as a child aspiring to a form of resilience that I thought was ideal: Someone who would just suck it up, shove away emotions, and never cry. I, a small girl, played ice hockey with boys from age six to age 15, so it didn’t seem wise to ever have tears in my eyes. (Spoilers: This is not what builds mental, emotional, or physical fortitude.)
But off the ice, I also spent a lot of time wallowing in my feelings by reading Nicholas Sparks novels and watching Grey’s Anatomy. One of the first emotionally devastating books I remember crying to was required reading in school: Bridge to Terabithia (my throat’s starting to constrict just thinking about it). And for some reason, it felt good to cry to all these sad stories, to remember that life is fleeting but love lives on forever.
I still seek out sad books to read. If anything, I’ve become more weepy as I age. (I haven’t watched all 19 seasons (and counting) of Grey’s Anatomy for nothing!)
Are you ready to shed some tears? The following list contains some of the saddest — and most beautiful — books to read, including many of my personal favorites, like Men We Reaped and The Art of Racing in the Rain.
1. The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
Didion’s passionate and vulnerable memoir is an honest portrayal of coming to terms with the loss of both a partner and a child. This depiction of love and the stages of grief is even more moving in the hands of one of America’s most influential writers.
2. The Bright Hour by Nina Riggs
The late Riggs, a poet, wife, and mother, was just 37 when she was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. Her memoir (published posthumously) is as much about what it means to live as what it means to die, and is (as you might expect from a descendant of poet and essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson) gorgeously written.
Riggs’ powerful prose explores how to “live with an awareness of death in the room,” and it will leave you wanting to embrace every moment with love and courage.
3. Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
Between 2000 and 2004, five young Black men in Ward’s life died — from being hit by a drunk driver, from a drug-related shooting, from overdosing on the drugs themselves.
Those are all drug-related, but Men We Reaped isn’t a story about drug abuse. Instead, it’s about the poverty, the racism, the sexism, and the myriad other systemic issues that lead to a reliance on things like the temporary highs of drugs in the first place.
“The same thing that make you laugh make you cry,” Roger, dead at 23, used to say. This is the thesis statement of Ward’s somber memoir of her life in DeLisle, Mississippi. In a time where we hear about another unjustly dead Black man seemingly every other week, Ward’s memoir injects some much-needed perspective and humanity into the larger narrative.
4. Night by Elie Wiesel
Learn about the real-life horrors of the Holocaust with Wiesel’s chilling first-person account of his experiences at Auschwitz. He paints a stark portrait of the resilience of the human spirit in the face of incomprehensible evil. His account of his family’s ordeal is outlined with unflinching honesty.
5. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
In a childhood friendship between two young boys of different classes in Afghanistan, tragedy is never far away. Amir is wealthy and craves the approval of his father, and Hassan is a servant, a member of a lesser class. When Hassan is brutally attacked and Amir does nothing to save him, the two drift apart.
This award-winning novel is the definition of a contemporary classic.
6. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize–winning novel is sensational — the rare book that takes a well-worn subject and adds an unforgettable spin. It follows the twin narratives of Marie-Laure, a blind French girl, and Werner, a German orphan recruited to the military, at the height of WWII.
The story is haunting, the imagery of war-torn France beautiful, and the characters so rich in depth that devouring the whole story is inevitable.
Netflix adapted the book into a miniseries that stars Aria Mia Loberti, Mark Ruffalo, and Hugh Laurie.
7. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
This deeply sympathetic debut about poverty and addiction in 1980s Glasgow offers a cutting look at the impact of Thatcherism in Scotland. The titular character, the young Shuggie Bain, is desperate to escape the trappings of being poor and attain that elusive status of “normal,” while his mother, Agnes, wants to stay sober but keeps falling back into alcoholism.
8. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
After getting off on the wrong foot, Jess and new-kid-at-school Leslie form a strong friendship and create an imaginary land called Terabithia. This Newbery Award–winning staple made me cry when I was in middle school and is worth revisiting for its healing powers of imagination in the face of unfathomable tragedy.
9. You’ve Reached Sam by Dustin Thao
Sam dies suddenly, but when his grieving girlfriend Julie calls him just to hear his voicemail, she’s shocked, confused, and delighted to find she’s actually speaking with him.
Smartphones prove how powerful and magical they really are at helping us stay connected in this sentimental story about moving on. You’ve Reached Sam is made for fans of Makoto Shinkai’s beloved anime movie, Your Name.
10. More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera
Silvera’s name has pretty much become synonymous with sadness (I mean that in a nice way — clearly I love a good sad story). More Happy Than Not is unforgettable, with its compelling characters, deft depiction of class politics without relying on stereotypes and slang, and message that hardship can help us find happiness.
11. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
See the trials and tribulations of a fraying family from the heartwarming perspective of their dog, Enzo. Man’s best friend has much to teach us about winning, losing, and loving — lessons that sustain readers during this novel’s emotionally turbulent ride.
12. Marley & Me by John Grogan
When author Grogan and his wife adopted a wriggly ball of fur, little did they know their Labrador would grow into a furry wrecking ball of energy and curiosity. While Marley’s laugh-out-loud antics drive the Grogans to the brink of insanity, he makes up for it with his unconditional love.
The movie adaptation starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson also brings most people to tears.
13. Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley
Ted is a lonely writer whose best friend is an aging dachshund named Lily. No surprise to any dog owner, Ted holds conversations with Lily about life, love, and other woes. He also converses with the “octopus” on Lily’s head.
The octopus is a tumor, by the way — just so you know what you’re getting into. There will be eye rain. (That’s what Lily calls tears.)
14. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Walker’s classic — a Pulitzer Prize winner that’s inspired adaptations on stage and screen — tells the story of Celie, a poor Black woman from rural Georgia in the early 1900s. Despite the unlucky hand she’s been dealt, Celie perseveres in rising above racism, abuse, and other harrowing challenges.
15. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
In many ways, this seems like your stereotypical sexy romance novel: Protagonist Lily Bloom must choose between a hot doctor named Ryle and her first love, Atlas. But the story shines above the rest for its very real and poignant portrayal of cycles of abuse.
You should have tissues handy while reading any of Hoover’s works, but be prepared to get through a whole box while reading It Ends with Us.
16. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Picoult’s novel is a thought-provoking read about a family that blurs the lines between right and wrong.
Anna was born for one reason: to be a donor for her older sister, Kate, who battles cancer. Like most teenagers, Anna begins to question her rights, obligations, and very identity. But unlike most, her choices have the power to save (or end) her sister’s life.
