Hélène’s
Faves
Nonfiction Books
Aging Vibrantly
A Long Bright Future: Happiness, Health, and Financial Security in an Age of Increased Longevity
by Laura L. Cartensen
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End
by Dr. Atul Gawande
Disrupt Aging: A Bold New Path to Living Your Best Life at Every Age
by Jo-Ann Jenkins
Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family
by Robert Kolker
Life Reimagined: The Science, Art and Opportunity of Midlife
by Barbara Bradley Hagerty
The Adult Years: Mastering the Art of Self-Renewal
by Frederic Hudson
Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes
by William Bridges
Women Rowing North: Navigating Life’s Currents and Flourishing as We Age
by Mary Pipher
Purpose & Happiness
Designing Your Life
by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans
Man’s Search for Meaning
by Viktor E. Frankl
Off Balance: Getting Beyond the Work-Life Balance Myth to Personal and Professional Satisfaction
by Matthew Kelly
On Purpose: How We Create The Meaning of Life
by Paul Froese
The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50
by Jonathan Rauch
The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom
by Jonathan Haidt
The Happiness Trap: How to Stop Struggling and Start Living (A Guide to ACT)
by Russ Harris
The Path to Purpose: How Young People Find Their Calling in Life
by William Damon
The Pathfinder: How to Choose or Change Your Career for a Lifetime of Satisfaction and Success
by Nicholas Lore
The Power of Meaning: Crafting a Life that Matters
by Emily Esfahani Smith
The Power of Purpose: Find Meaning, Live Longer, Better
by Richard Leider
Intimate Relationships
Come As You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life
by Emily Nagoski
Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations for a Lifetime of Love
by Sue Johnson
The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts
by Gary Chapman
The Rough Patch: Marriage and the Art of Living Together
by Daphne de Marneffe
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work: A Practical Guide from the Country’s Foremost Relationship Expert
by John M. Gottman, Ph.D.
The Sweetness of Venus: a History of the Clitoris
by Sarah Chadwick
This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism
by Ashton Applewhite
Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart: Thirty True Things You Need to Know Now
by Gordon Livingston, MD
Untamed
by Glennon Doyle
Wedding Toasts I’ll Never Give
by Ada Calhoun
Thriving
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way we Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
by Brené Brown
Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life
by Martin Seligman
Playing Big: Practical Wisdom for Women Who Want to Speak Up, Create, and Lead
by Tara Mohr
Self-Compassion
by Kristin Neff
Smarter Faster Better
by Charles Duhigg
The Gifts of Imperfection
by Brené Brown
Psychology & Mental Health
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
by Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD
Good Morning Monster: A Therapist Shares Five Heroic Stories of Emotional Recovery
by Catherine Gildiner
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed
by Lori Gottlieb
Moving Beyond Trauma: The Roadmap to Healing from Your Past and Living with Ease and Vitality
by Ilene Smith
Nobody’s Normal: How Culture Created the Stigma of Mental Illness
by Roy Richard Grinker
The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression
by Andrew Solomon
An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Mood and Madness
by Kay Redfield Jamison
The Way She Feels: My Life on the Borderline
by Courtney Cook
Why Won’t You Apologize? Healing Big Betrayals and Everyday Hurts
by Harriet Lerner