Young people's mental health

Find shelf help in your local library

Reading Well for young people recommends expert endorsed books about mental health, providing 13 to 18 year olds with advice and information about issues like anxiety, stress and OCD, and difficult experiences like bullying and exams.

The books have all been recommended by young people and health professionals, and are available to borrow for free from public libraries.

Selected titles are also available to borrow as e-books and audiobooks. Visit your local library website to find out how to join the library and access books electronically.

Browse the books on the list below or download a full overview of the titles here.

General

Stuff That Sucks: Accepting What You Can't Change and Committing to What You Can

Ben Sedley
House of Windows

Alexia Casale
Mind Your Head

Juno Dawson, Dr. Olivia Hewitt, Gemma Correll
Every Day

David Levithan
The Self-Esteem Team's Guide to Sex, Drugs and WTFs!?

The Self-Esteem Team
Quiet the Mind

Matthew Johnstone
Blame My Brain: The Amazing Teenage Brain Revealed

Nicola Morgan
Kite Spirit

Sita Brahmachari
I'll Give You the Sun

Jandy Nelson

ADHD

Putting on the Brakes: Understanding and Taking Control of Your ADD or ADHD

Patricia O. Quinn, MD, Judith M. Stern, MA

Anxiety, worry and panic

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Stephen Chbosky
Anxiety Survival Guide for Teens: CBT Skills to Overcome Fear, Worry, and Panic

Jennifer Shannon
My Anxious Mind: A Teen's Guide to Managing Anxiety and Panic

Michael A. Tompkins, Katherine A. Martinez, Michael Sloan
The Shyness and Social Anxiety Workbook for Teens: CBT and ACT Skills to Help You Build Social Confidence

Jennifer Shannon

Autism and Asperger syndrome

The Reason I Jump: One Boy's Voice from the Silence of Autism

Naoki Higashida, David Mitchell, Keiko Yoshida
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

Mark Haddon, Suzanne Dean
Freaks, Geeks and Asperger Syndrome: A User Guide to Adolescence

Luke Jackson

Body image and eating disorders

Banish Your Body Image Thief: A Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Workbook on Building Positive Body Image for Young People

Kate Collins-Donnelly
Tyranny

Lesley Fairfield
Can I Tell You About Eating Disorders?: A Guide for Friends, Family and Professionals

Bryan Lask, Lucy Watson, Fiona Field

Bullying

Vicious: True Stories by Teens About Bullying

Hope Vanderberg
Bullies, Cyberbullies and Frenemies

Michelle Elliott

Confidence and self-esteem

Face

Benjamin Zephaniah
Self-Esteem and Being You

Anita Naik
Banish Your Self-Esteem Thief: A Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Workbook on Building Positive Self-Esteem for Young People

Kate Collins-Donnelly

Depression

Am I Depressed and What Can I Do About it?: A CBT Self-Help Guide for Teenagers Experiencing Low Mood and Depression

Shirley Reynolds, Monika Parkinson
I Had a Black Dog

Matthew Johnstone
Can I Tell You About Depression?: A Guide for Friends, Family and Professionals

Christopher Dowrick, Susan Martin, Mike Medaglia, Paula Dowrick

Mood swings

Don't Let Your Emotions Run Your Life for Teens: Dialectical Behaviour Therapy Skills for Helping Teens Manage Mood Swings, Control Angry Outbursts, and Get Along with Others

Sheri Van Dijk

OCD

Breaking Free from OCD: A CBT Guide for Young People and Their Families

Jo Derisley, Isobel Heyman, Sarah Robinson, Cynthia Turner, Lisa Jo Robinson
Touch and Go Joe: An Adolescent's Experience of OCD

Joe Wells
The Unlikely Hero of Room 13b

Teresa Toten

Self-harm

The Truth About Self-Harm: For Young People and Their Friends and Families: 2016

Celia Richardson

Stress

The Teenage Guide to Stress

Nicola Morgan
Fighting Invisible Tigers: Stress Management for Teens

Earl Hipp