It’s no secret that we find a certain level of catharsis in crying over books, movies and other forms of media. I mean, who hasn’t gone on a sad movie binge or rocked out to the most depressing playlist ever after a tough loss? We cry, we feel, we (eventually) move on.
So if you’re ever feeling down and wanting some sobbing relief, or just looking for some deeper, more emotional reads, then you’ve got to check out these books! You’ll definitely shed a tear or two, and that’s okay. We certainly did, and look at us! We’re fine — mostly.
First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison
Cammy [Social Media Assistant]
I wasn’t expecting this cute cartoon-cover romcom to destroy me the way it did, but here we are. Behind the charming set-up is a story of two people craving human connection in an age where everyone seems more distant than ever. I mean, a woman who’s never been in love meets a romance radio show host who no longer believes in love? The emotional journeys practically write themselves.
This book has so much to say about love in all its different forms, the power of community and the bravery it takes to be soft in a harsh world. B.K. Borison, you had no business calling me out like that!
Weep Score: Shattered my heart, but also glued it back together again.
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Olivia [Social Media Assistant]
The depth to which these characters felt like individuals I knew and loved really created the space for the knife to be wedged into my chest at the climax of this book. This text spans 30 years and orbits within the intimate space of more-than-lovers-but-never-together. Two entwined spirits who find themselves coming together and apart again in a myriad of ways — throughout a Californian childhood, east coast college years and back to LA for their creative careers. This book is the epitome of the quote “to be loved is to be known.” I cried more than once.
Weep Score: My therapist will be hearing about this.
The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros
Kendall [Publicity Assistant and Graphic Artist]
When I found out that Rebecca Yarros, known lately for her broody dragons and even broodier dragon riders, wrote contemporary fiction, I knew I had to give it a shot. What I didn’t know was that my mom had it out for me when she told me to read this book.
Last summer, my contemporary beach-read dreams were shot to hell when this single-mom-meets-lone-wolf-soldier romance dropped into my lap (my Kindle library), and left me with my head in my hands, sobbing for two hours straight long after we had returned from the coast.
But my mom was right: this book was beautiful and traumatizing in a way that makes you want to recommend it, so here I am.
Weep Score: Mentally, I’m at a B&B in Telluride, fire roaring and a dog at my feet. Physically, my eyes are puffy.
Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler
Camryn [VP of Digital Marketing]
Tendler’s love for her iconic French bulldog Petunia is well-documented on Instagram and in the pages of her debut memoir. When Petunia dies, Tendler takes readers through the sharp and intimate elements of her mourning. It’s one of the most powerful depictions of loyalty, love and grief that I’ve read in years.
This chapter of the book had me in tears; I legitimately woke my dog up with the emotional outburst.
Weep Score: Cancelling weekend plans to maximize canine bonding time.
The Host by Stephenie Meyer
Natalie [Publicist]
Team BookTrib knows that I never shut up about The Host by Stephenie Meyer.
An unexpected tear-jerker, this (very thick) sci-fi novel manages to evoke empathy towards a parasitic alien species. Don’t knock it till you try it! Filled with heart-pumping action, atmospheric desert landscapes, and an unusual group of apocalypse survivors, the ending of this tale proves the power of love, even between species.
Weep Score: One single, crystal-like tear drop rolling down your cheek coincided with a newfound meaning of love and life.
A Long Way Home: A Memoir by Saroo Brierley
Barb [Sales & Development]
Oh, how to choose just one book that made me cry! This was such a tough assignment, but I decided to go with an older book: A Long Way Home: A Memoir by Saroo Brierley. It’s the memoir that inspired the equally tear-inducing film Lion (side note: if you haven’t seen the movie, it’s a must-see!).
This miraculous and deeply moving story follows a 5-year-old Indian boy (Saroo) who gets lost on a train and ends up in the city of Calcutta, very far from home. Alone on the streets for weeks, he eventually lands in an orphanage and is adopted by a loving couple in Australia. Yet, Saroo never stopped wondering about his first family and where he came from. Many years later, as a young adult, armed with only fragments of memory and the help of the newly invented Google Earth, he accomplished the impossible — tracking down his hometown and setting out to reunite with the family he had lost.
I don’t think it’s any secret how the story ends. The reunion with his mother and siblings is heart-wrenching and beautiful all at once. Reading about this experience, I was absolutely gutted. This is truly a five-hanky book!
Weep Score: Five hankies! 🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
Cynthia [Editorial Director]
I’ve read lots of books that have made me cry over the years, but this one in particular is memorable, as it was the first book I can remember that made me sad. Up until this point, my reading world revolved around the Bobbsey Twins, Ramona Quimby, Madeline — you see where this is going, right? In the space of just one pivotal scene in Charlotte’s Web, my age of reading innocence was over.
Inconsolably destroyed, I refused to finish the book. How could it be that the title character dies? Don’t the good characters always get a happy ever after? It wasn’t fair! How awful Charlotte the spider dies alone, and oh, poor Wilbur the pig, forever separated from her! And on and on.
Years later, I learned that the book actually has a beautiful ending where Charlotte’s children and grandchildren go on to keep Wilbur company, and the cycle of life — and friendship — is renewed.
Maybe one day I’ll get past Charlotte’s death and read it for myself.
Weep Score: Cried myself to sleep.
The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
Caroline [Project Management Assistant]
When I finished The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo, I was in tears. It captures the complexity of being in love with the right person — and losing them. Lucy and Gabe have unfortunate timing and make choices that leave them wondering what could have been. This novel shows the reality of people being pulled in different directions when the connection is strong as ever.
Weep Score: Had to take a walk after this one.
The End of Loneliness by Benedict Wells, translated by Charlotte Collins
Kelsey [Project Manager]
There aren’t many things that make me cry (other than emotional insurance commercials for some reason, those get me every time), so when a book brings me to actual tears, you know it’s the real deal, and the latest book in this category is The End of Loneliness by Benedict Wells. After the devastating loss of his parents, Jules’s bond with his siblings begins to unravel as he retreats inward. Fifteen years go by, and the only thing still keeping these siblings connected is their shared grief.
Each page of this book aches with absence and loneliness (hence the title), reminding us that if we let it, that loneliness can become a lifelong companion that will shape our choices, leaving us with regret. While reading this, there wasn’t one crucial moment that made me cry, but it all compounded; it was a kind of sadness that lingered after I finished, and the heaviness that stayed with me afterward.
Weep Score: 9 out of 10! A masterclass in quiet devastation. Expect to cry, sigh and stare at the wall afterward.
Out of Nowhere by Roan Parrish
JeriAnn [Writer]
It takes a certain level of mastery to take the villain who has bullied and belittled the hero from your previous book and set him on a redemption arc — and succeed. Colin is a bully prone to panic attacks and rages, and his youngest brother (and favorite target of his homophobia) has put himself out of reach.
There’s a secret that is making Colin slowly destroy himself — he’s also gay — and has long been the chief victim of his father’s violence. When Colin is warmly befriended by social justice worker Rafael, his carefully constructed hell starts to disintegrate. Rafael has his own trauma and secrets, but he’s the one person stepping between Colin and his ballistic self-destruction.
My emotions received a heavy workout as Rafael, ever a model of patience and loving kindness, revealed his own devastating wounds, and Colin gave up the need to please his abuser and find a way to live in the light. This isn’t light reading, and it’s important to check the content warnings before you start, but Out of Nowhere is beautifully written and delivers all the feels.
Weep Score: Best read with an emotional support pillow to squeeze, a box of extra-soft tissues and a good comfort snack. Have a friend on standby for debriefing afterward.
The Night Garden: Of My Mother by Sandra Tyler
Katie [Editorial]
Few stories shatter my heart so completely — and I absolutely loved it. I became so wrapped up in Tyler’s memoir that I found myself crying multiple times, utterly moved by her vivid and heart-wrenching portrayal of the complex layers of motherhood and daughterhood, and what it’s like to watch someone you love slowly disappear.
The Night Garden is the memoir of a woman watching the slow deterioration of her aging mother’s mind and body, connecting the woman she sees now with the woman of her memories.
In a way, Tyler loses her mother — herself becoming the caregiver, the motherly figure — but in another way, she discovers something new. Something that was always there but was covered up by the title of “mother.” A woman. An artist. A soul that boldly faced life with a smile.
Weep Score: Be sure to have a tall stack of lighthearted rom-coms nearby to soothe your aching heart — and go call your mother!
