Mental health memoirs and recommended reading from author Russell Norris

This book is well-known, nowadays. But when it first came out of nowhere in 2012 it was a revelation. It sparked a global movement and brought a new narrative into focus: how being a quiet or reserved person isn’t a weakness...but an undervalued strength.

The Descent of Man

Grayson Perry

£9.99 £9.29

Two things make this important for me. First, it’s written by a man on a subject that men don’t talk about: masculinity. Second, it’s written from a very British perspective. It reveals the powerful negativity a lot of men can harbour. And how they can channel it for good.

The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Surivive and Thrive When the World Overwhelms You

Elaine N. Aron

£12.99 £12.08

You know that moment in most X-Men movies, when a young mutant discovers there are others in the world just like them? I felt a bit like that when I read this book. It gave a name to the kind of person I am. And described how I feel every day when I step out into the world.

The Noonday Demon

Andrew Solomon

£14.99 £13.94

This book is highbrow and hard-going at times. But it’s full of searing moments of honesty from a man living through depression. I read it at the impressionable age of 21 and parts of it never left me. Particularly the extremes Solomon went to as he tried to escape from his pain.