lou's library

If you’ve found your way to this blog post, I’d like to ask you a question: Are you okay? Purposely looking for books that will devastate you? Then again, I’m one to talk. I love nothing more than hard-hitting books, and this year I’ve read quite a few one of those. I’ll not recommend A Little Life or Song Of Achilles, because while they no doubt will make you SOB, you’ve probably seen them on TikTok a hundred times by now. Instead, I’ll try to shine a light on some books that don’t get the same amount of attention, but are great tear-jerkers nonetheless. So, buckle up and don’t say I didn’t warn you!!

Boys Don’t Cry by Fiona Scarlett

I read this book on two train journeys and let me just say, by the end I had to sit down and take deep breaths. Boys Don’t Cry was gifted to me by a dear friend who did warn me that it would probably make me sad. So I guess you could say I knew what I was getting into. Except I didn’t. I wasn’t ready for the way Joe and Finn, the brother protagonists of the novel, would sneak their way into my heart in absolutely no time. The premise of the book is simple: we follow each boy’s perspective in alternating chapters and different times in their lives. They are living in one of four tower blocks of flats in Dublin and we get to see them experience a number of family struggles and setbacks. I really don’t wanna give too much away, but I don’t see how anyone could not love these boys. The writing in this book is exquisite and really brings their personalities to life. Also, it evoked an Irishness that I found both endearing and at times scary. There’s so much love in this book, but also so much sadness. I just want everyone to read it!! I know I’ll be thinking about Finn and Joe for a long time.

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

How does one describe Piranesi? I can only fail. This book is unique and beautiful and fantastical and absolutely impossible to put into words. You shall simply have to experience it for yourself. I promise you it will be an amazing adventure and you will love the protagonist! It might take a little while to get into, but it is so worth perservering!! I’d say Piranesi isn’t sad in an obvious way, but there’s a tenderness underneath the story that unfolds over time and by the end, I felt so full of love for the protagonist, but also incredibly sad? Ugh, writing about this book is frustrating because I’m not doing it any justice at all. Please, just give this one a go!!

After You’d Gone by Maggie O’Farrell

No one knows how to break my heart like Maggie O’Farrell. Every damn time, she makes me want to cry my heart out. And every time, I don’t see it coming. My fault, really. But I also can’t stop reading her books because THEY ARE SO DAMN GOOD. After You’d Gone is absolutely no exception. In fact, it might be my favourite book of hers I’ve read so far! It’s basically just a love story, and by “just” I mean that it’s absolute perfection and incredibly well-written and although I read this book ten months ago, not a week goes by where I don’t think about Alice and John. Damn, I love these two. And damn you, Maggie O’Farrell for writing such great, heartbreaking books. I know Hamnet by her is the book that is getting all the attention. And I get it, that’s a great book! (Counting the days till the Paul Mescal adaptation drops and it will become my new identity). But After You’d Gone hits in a different way, believe me!! Read it and thank me later.

Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart

Every book I read by Douglas Stuart makes me sad. But Young Mungo was on another level for me. It’s set in Scotland, where Mungo is growing up in poverty with a struggling Mum who sends him on a fishing weekend to a loch with two older men. The story unfolds from thereand gives deep insights into what it’s like to grow up with little resources in Scotland. It’s written with so much care and attention to detail, I genuinely thought I was there with them. Substance abuse also plays a big role in this book and it really made me hate the vicious circle that a failing welfare state puts people in. Above all though, I felt for Mungo. He’s just a teen and tries his best, but his lot in life is a difficult one and through no fault of his own, he has to experience some truly shitty things. Young Mungo stayed with me for a long time and although I mostly felt sad while reading it, I’d give so much to be able to read it again for the first time. This book will always have a special place in my heart and if you want to mourn for the state of the world and everything going wrong in it, Young Mungo will be of great service to you.

Ein ganzes Leben by Robert Seethaler

This book was translated into English by Charlotte Collins. Its English title is A Whole Life and I truly hope the translation does the original justice, because my god, the writing is phenomenal. The writing style is simple and subtle but spot on and it hits you right in the feels. As the title suggests, the book follows one man’s life from beginnnig to end. The protagonist Andreas spends most of his life in the Austrian Alps and as he gets older has to witness and endure so much loss and hardship, but never lets that get the better of him. The novel ponders questions of solitude and meaningfulness and does so in a beautiful and heartfelt way. It is a sad book, because our protagonist isn’t particularly lucky. It took me a little while, but I grew to really like him and feel for him. He would’ve deserved the world, but in the end got so little. Gosh, I’m getting sad again writing about it. There also is a movie adaptation that I would recommend! It captures the mood of the book perfectly.

I hope you’ve got tissues on hand when starting one of these! Do let me know if you read one and what your thoughts are. And send recommendations for heartbreaking books my way please because I do like to torture myself. Happy reading ❤