Books That Will Make You Cry (even if you hate reading)

My mom always told me from a young age I had a high pain tolerance and every time she told me I smiled to myself because for some reason it separated me from everyone else. I was TOUGH, I could handle everything and anything. As the oldest of four this seemed fitting, but fast forward and apparently growing up meant I would also become in touch with my emotions and that means I would cry (gross). I’m kidding! I think it’s crazy important to be in touch with your emotions but geez this crap is exhausting! That leads me to my next statement-though I may cry sometimes but I NEVER cry during movies or books. I always give props to the writer that brings even the slightest tear to my eye because it takes a lot! That being said, over the last year I have read some pretty intense books, I started them for various reasons but crying was not one and them yet with every single book I am about to let you in on-I had tears streaming down my face. When I say they were streaming down my face I am not just talking at the end of the book when everything does or does not come together, the tears were flowing in the most random places! Without further ado, here are not only my favorite books but the book that I deem amazing enough to spark some sort of fire within you.

(These are not in any particular order) 

Where the Crawdads Sing

Delia Owens

I moved home from college in March due to COVID and I needed to revisit my love of reading since it had been neglected during college. My mom had recently read Where The Crawdads Sing and she finished it in a week! That told me everything I needed to know because anyone who knows my mom knows she is busy!  This book was finished in record time. Wildlife scientist Delia Owens shook the world with her first-ever novel-Where the Crawdads Sing, following the survival of Kya also known as “Marsh Girl” in North Carolina. The imagery in this book will pull you in and have you wish you had dedicated your career to that of a naturalist (except my mom because she already did that). Kya is abandoned at a young age which poses the most mysterious plot as she fends for herself with little help from the outside world. This book has romance, murder, grief, and survival that paint the most haunting scenes in your imagination. It had been a long time since a  book gave me chills and had my heart rapidly beating since page one-in fact I refused to pick up the book for a whole week as I neared the end because I was not ready to leave the plot behind. I wish I could go back and reread this book for the first time since Owens leaves you BREATHLESS with an unexpected story of endurance and the raw emotion. You need to read this book. Period.

Blue Clay People: Seasons on Africa’s Fragile Edge 

William Powers 

I remember my mom having this book around while I was growing up and never thought I would get around to it, she always told me about the intense truth it held. Before I left for Ghana my mom handed me the book and we both knew that living in Ghana would be a good time to read this draw similarities between the West African countries. Blue Clay People is a haunting account of the Liberian Civil War which killed over 250,000 people between ‘89 and ‘97. It takes place through an aid worker's eye as he refuses to leave the country while it's destroyed by war. This book is transparent and eye-opening especially since Liberia is my brother and sister's nation of birth. This was an additional step in understanding the structure of the country and the deeply rooted trauma that Liberians are still living with. I recommend this book to anyone to have a better understanding of Liberia and especially if you know my family. I think it's important to push through the really difficult books and the raw historical accounts because we owe it to others to have a better understanding of their life, trauma, and journey. 

Salt to the Sea

Ruta Sepetys

In all honesty, I owe this discovery to Massa Rose because she has been literally OBSESSED with it since 4th grade. Massa has always read at an extremely high level, and I think it is safe to say she reads this once a year-you do the math. I was nervous to start it because nothing compared to Where the Crawdads Sing but soon I realized this book was just as emotional and breathtaking. Sepetys specializes in historical fiction, especially the untold stories of major events. This follows four very different people who have crossed paths when traveling to the MV Wilhelm Gustloff in East Prussia. The Gustloff was the largest maritime shipwreck in history. The book follows four characters as they evacuate their home countries, each carrying a secret as they navigate across the country to the evacuation ships. I can’t say much else since a big part of the book are the twists and secrets that tie everything together. This is another book you will wish you could read for the first time repeatedly just to relive the feeling it gives you! If you don’t believe me ask Massa.

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City

Matthew Desmond  

This book didn’t make me cry but infuriated me instead and it deserves to be on this list. Evicted is a research-based book-highly recommended by universities and sociologists across the country. Matthew Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with the intention to reveal the housing crisis in the country. Milwaukee’s housing and poverty crisis represent ALL American cities. Desmond follows eight different stories and how each partakes in the crisis differently. You soon discover something that qualifies this book and research even more because of the angle Desmond approached it at. Please read to have a better understanding of the American city and how it’s preventing people from making progress. 

I have a few more up my sleeve that but you need to start with these. There are NOT a lot of books that cause me emotional distress but these four take the cake. Go right now to your local bookstore (because shopping local is important) and start your weekend with one of these books. I think each of these books holds intense twists and secrets that put them above the rest. This topic may seem a little “off-brand” for this blog but I think it’s actually is spot-on, none of these are shallow (I hate shallow). Each of these books causes an epiphany of some sort, each of these books causes you to slow down and become emotionally invested in some intense ideas. Slow down today-you owe it to yourself.

Good morning from Milwaukee.

Xoxo

Corrinne Ruth