Suicide: recommended titles
Suffolk Libraries has worked together with local charity Hope After Suicide Loss (HOPE) to put together a reading list for children and adults affected by suicide.
A Grief Observed, by C. S. Lewis
A Grief Observed comprises the reflections of the great scholar and Christian on the death of his wife after only a few short years of marriage. Painfully honest in its dissection of his thoughts and feelings, this is a book that details his paralysing grief, bewilderment and sense of loss in simple and moving prose.
Invaluable as an insight into the grieving process just as much as it is as an exploration of religious doubt, A Grief Observed will continue to offer its consoling insights to a huge range of readers, as it has for over fifty years.
When It is Darkest: Why People Die by Suicide and What We Can Do to Prevent It, by Rory C. O'Connor
When you are faced with the unthinkable, this is the book you can turn to. Suicide is baffling and devastating in equal measures, and it can affect any one of us: one person dies by suicide every 40 seconds. Yet despite the scale of the devastation, for family members and friends, suicide is still poorly understood. Drawing on decades of work in the field of suicide prevention and research, and having been bereaved by suicide twice, Professor O'Connor is here to help. This book will untangle the complex reasons behind suicide and dispel any unhelpful myths. For those trying to help someone vulnerable, it will provide indispensable advice on communication, stressing the importance of listening to fears and anxieties without judgment.
Are You Really Ok?, by Roman Kemp
During the pandemic, Roman's life changed when his best friend - the producer who'd nurtured his career every step of the way - tragically took his own life. Amidst the shock, loss and confusion, Roman bravely made a moving BBC3 documentary about the alarming rates of suicide amongst young males. He's well aware he too, could have been a statistic. In this page-turning book - peppered with hilarious and surprising anecdotes from his youth - Roman also unflinchingly tackles the taboo of suicide, in the hope that by talking about his own struggles and sharing advice, he can help others. Roman shares all the experiences that have shaped him, and why love, marriage and having his own family one day are so important to his future dreams.
Before the Light Fades: A Memoir of Grief and Resistance, by Natasha Walter
From the acclaimed writer and thinker, a moving memoir about losing her mother to suicide as well as honouring the legacy of a family whose members struggled bravely against some of the worst crises of the twentieth century.
Borrow Before the Light Fades →
How Not to Kill Yourself: Portrait of a Suicidal Mind, by Clancy W. Martin
The last time Clancy Martin tried to kill himself was in his basement with a dog leash. He didn't write a note. How Not to Kill Yourself is an affirmation of life by someone who has tried to end it multiple times. It's about standing in your bathroom every morning, gearing yourself up to die. It's about choosing to go on living anyway. In an unflinching account of his darkest moments, Clancy Martin makes the case against suicide, drawing on the work of philosophers from Seneca to Jean Améry. Through critical inquiry and practical steps, we might yet answer our existential despair more freely - and with a little more creativity.
Borrow How Not to Kill Yourself →
A Special Scar: the Experiences of People Bereaved by Suicide by Alison Wertheimer
Every 85 minutes someone in the UK takes their own life, but what happens to those left behind? In a society where suicide is often viewed with fear or disapproval, it can be difficult for those personally affected by a suicide death to come to terms with their loss and seek help and support.
A Special Scar looks in detail at the stigma surrounding suicide and offers practical help for survivors, relatives and friends of people who have taken their own life. Fifty bereaved people tell their own stories, showing us that, by not hiding the truth from themselves and others, they have been able to learn to live with the suicide, offering hope to others facing this traumatic loss.
Beyond the Rough Rock: supporting a child who has been bereaved through suicide, by Di Stubbs and Julie Stokes
Explaining to a child that someone has died by suicide is possibly one of the most difficult situations that a parent or carer might ever face. This booklet offers practical advice for families in the immediate days and weeks when suicide has been the cause of death. It is hoped that children may then begin to understand some of the complexities that often surround suicide.
The booklet includes child-friendly activities for you to do as a family as you begin to make sense of what has happened and start to look at ways in which your family can learn to cope.
Borrow Beyond the Rough Rock →
Children Also Grieve, by Linda Goldman
Children Also Grieve is an imaginative resource, fully illustrated with colour photographs, that offers support and reassurance to children coming to terms with the loss of a close friend or relative and to adults who are supporting them through their bereavement.
Cry of Pain: understanding suicide and the suicidal mind, by Mark Williams
Cry of Pain examines the evidence from a social, psychological and biological perspective to see if there are common features that might shed light on suicide. Informative and sympathetically written, it is essential reading for therapists and mental health professionals as well as those struggling with suicidal feelings, their families and friends.
Dying to Be Free: a Healing Guide for Families After a Suicide, by Beverley Cobain and Jean Larch
A healing guide for family members who have lost a loved one to suicide, this book contains recollections from suicide survivors to provide an insight into the confusion, fear, and guilt family members experience.
Malignant Sadness: the Anatomy of Depression, by Lewis Wolpert
Is depression a question of genetics, bad parental care, or distressing life events? This book presents in accessible terms what scientists and psychiatrists know about the subject.
My Son... My Son...: a Guide to Healing After a Suicide in the Family, by Iris Bolton and Curtis Mitchell
Iris Bolton's personal story of her son's suicide is a deeply moving, poignant one. It is a story of both a devastating tragedy and an exquisite triumph - and the agonising, relentless, conflicted process connecting these two oppositional pulls.
One Step at a Time: Mourning a Child, by Betty Madill
Writing from personal experience, Betty Madill offers practical suggestions to help people embark on their own path of healing and acceptance. It combines personal recommendations with recognized bereavement counselling advice.
One Wild Song: a voyage in a lost son's wake, by Paul Heiney
Poignant, moving, funny, thought provoking and beautifully written, Paul Heiney's account of setting his own course through seemingly insurmountable grief makes for a powerful story. Injected with humour, perceptiveness and philosophy, recounting his highs, lows, frustrations and triumphs, the honesty and openness of Paul's story makes this very personal account a universal tale.
Reasons to Stay Alive, by Matt Haig
Aged 24, Matt Haig's world caved in. He could see no way to go on living. This is the true story of how he came through crisis, triumphed over an illness that almost destroyed him and learned to live again. A moving, funny and joyous exploration of how to live better, love better and feel more alive, this is more than a memoir: it is a book about making the most of your time on Earth.
Borrow Reasons to Stay Alive →
Silent Grief: Living in the Wake of Suicide, by Christopher Lukas and Henry M. Seiden
This text provides insights into living in the wake of suicide and provides useful strategies and support for those affected by a suicide, as well as professionals in the field of psychology, social work and medicine.
The Forgotten Mourners: Sibling Survivors of Suicide, by Magdaline Halous DeSousa, John's Sister
This book is meant for anyone who has lost a brother or sister to suicide – and those who want to support them. Any loss is difficult, but a loss to suicide is heightened because of the helplessness and confusion surrounding it. A sibling loss to suicide is even more unique because the sibling(s) left behind are often forgotten – mourning the loss of their brother or sister alone in the shadows of their parents’ grief.
Magdaline answers questions directly from her experience following the loss of her 18 year-old brother, John, to suicide in November 2001. Hopefully, her story will give readers a small piece of strength, faith, and peace in navigating the long road to healing ahead.
Borrow The Forgotten Mourners →
The Scent of Dried Roses, by Tim Lott
The Scent of Dried Roses is Tim Lott's moving and disturbing personal inquest into the death of his mother. Why did she kill herself? What had he, her son, to do with it?
Borrow The Scent of Dried Roses →
The Suicidal Mind, by Edwin Schneidman
Presenting cases - recounted in the patients' own words - that reveal the inner workings of the suicidal mind, Shneidman looks at suicide from a psychological perspective. He offers a wealth of insights to help understand and to prevent suicide.
Touched by Suicide, by Michael F. Myers and Carla Fine
In this definitive guide book, Michael F. Myers, MD, a leading psychiatrist, and Carla Fine combine their perspectives as a physician and a survivor to offer compassionate and practical advice to anyone affected by suicide.