88 books like The Suicide Shop

By Jean Teulé, Sue Dyson (translator),

Here are 88 books that The Suicide Shop fans have personally recommended if you like The Suicide Shop. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Convenience Store Woman

Marian Frances Wolbers Author Of Rider

From my list on a sweet journey into Japan.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been enjoying Japanese stories from the moment I first found them, a direct result of living, studying, and working in Japan for five years, from Imari City (in Kyushu Island) to Tokyo (on Honshu). The pacing of Japanese novels—starting out slowly and deliberately, then speeding up like a tsunami out of nowhere—totally appeals to me, and feels infinitely more connected to exploring the subtleties, complexity, and beauty of relationships. This is especially true when compared to Western novels, which seem overly obsessed with splashing grand, dramatic action and injury on every other page. I just love revisiting Japan through reading.

Marian's book list on a sweet journey into Japan

Marian Frances Wolbers Why did Marian love this book?

This contemporary, quirky tale centers around the life of Keiko, a young woman who has never done anything in a conventional way and has her mother very worried that her daughter will never find a man and settle down into a conventional life. No, Keiko’s ways of thinking are startling and odd in ways that are both amusing and somewhat horrifying, as she really does fall outside the realm of conventional thinking and socially rewarded behavior. The reader comes to love her as she grows into womanhood (and personhood) as a worker in a fast-paced convenience store, where she memorizes hundreds of products and practices behaving more “normally” by mimicking the actions and words of her co-workers. Then a man named Shiraha enters the picture, for a new twist.

By Sayaka Murata, Ginny Tapley Takemori (translator),

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked Convenience Store Woman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Meet Keiko.

Keiko is 36 years old. She's never had a boyfriend, and she's been working in the same supermarket for eighteen years.

Keiko's family wishes she'd get a proper job. Her friends wonder why she won't get married.

But Keiko knows what makes her happy, and she's not going to let anyone come between her and her convenience store...


Book cover of Naïve. Super

Lee Crutchley Author Of Nobody Knows What They're Doing: The 10 Secrets All Artists Should Know

From my list on when you feel lost in life.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm a writer from a small town in England that nobody has heard of, who now lives in Berlin. I have written books about depression, insomnia, creativity, and travel that have been translated into 20 languages. My book How to Be Happy (or at Least Less Sad) was called "a wonderful tool for anyone struggling with depression – or even just feeling blah" by Publishers Weekly. My latest book Nobody Knows What They're Doing is available now.

Lee's book list on when you feel lost in life

Lee Crutchley Why did Lee love this book?

Every book on my list has changed my life in some way, but this novel probably had the biggest impact. When I first read it, my life had followed a similar trajectory to the protagonist. I had become disillusioned with the meaning of life, quit my job, and left home to travel the world for a year or so. This book explores a lot of big themes in deceptively simple language. I re-read it any time I feel a bit lost in life. It always helps me to feel better, and see that things fit together, in just the right way.

By Erlend Loe, Tor Ketil Solberg (translator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Naïve. Super as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Troubled by an inability to find any meaning in his life, the 25-year-old narrator of this deceptively simple novel quits university and eventually arrives at his brother's New York apartment.

In a bid to discover what life is all about, he writes lists. He becomes obsessed by time and whether it actually matters. He faxes his meteorologist friend. He endlessly bounces a ball against the wall. He befriends a small boy who lives next door.

He yearns to get to the bottom of life and how best to live it.

Funny, friendly, enigmatic and frequently poignant - superbly naive.


Book cover of Set My Heart to Five

Lucie Britsch Author Of Sad Janet

From my list on when having an existential crisis to feel better.

Why am I passionate about this?

Hi there, I’m Lucie and I’m a writer (allegedly) but before that I’m a human and I know how hard it is to be a human. It’s a constant battle with yourself, the people around you, the world, and it’s exhausting and sometimes it can be too much but we find ways to keep going and books help me do that (as well as crying, screaming, potatoes). I find life absurd most of the time so I have to laugh about it or I’d go insane. And I’m still alive, despite constantly being in a fight with my brain, so I think I’ve got this.

Lucie's book list on when having an existential crisis to feel better

Lucie Britsch Why did Lucie love this book?

This book got me out of a funk when I couldn’t feel like reading anything. It’s a book about a robot that wants to write a movie to save humanity after he becomes self-aware. It’s funny and sweet and will make you laugh and cry maybe not worry so much about the imminent robot uprising.

By Simon Stephenson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Set My Heart to Five as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“Science fiction satire in the Vonnegut mold.”—Cory Doctorow

*SET TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE DIRECTED BY EDGAR WRIGHT (SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD)*

‘A beautiful, funny, heartfelt analysis of what it means to be human.’—Simon Pegg

‘One of the most unique books ever crafted.’—Mike Chen, author of A Beginning at the End

Set in a 2054 where humans have locked themselves out of the internet and Elon Musk has incinerated the moon, Set My Heart to Five is the hilarious yet profoundly moving story of one android’s emotional awakening.

One day at a screening of a classic movie, Jared…


Book cover of Perfect Sound Whatever

Lucie Britsch Author Of Sad Janet

From my list on when having an existential crisis to feel better.

Why am I passionate about this?

Hi there, I’m Lucie and I’m a writer (allegedly) but before that I’m a human and I know how hard it is to be a human. It’s a constant battle with yourself, the people around you, the world, and it’s exhausting and sometimes it can be too much but we find ways to keep going and books help me do that (as well as crying, screaming, potatoes). I find life absurd most of the time so I have to laugh about it or I’d go insane. And I’m still alive, despite constantly being in a fight with my brain, so I think I’ve got this.

Lucie's book list on when having an existential crisis to feel better

Lucie Britsch Why did Lucie love this book?

A beautiful book by one of my favourite comics about one man’s mental breakdown and how music and the people who made it saved him from the worst year of his life. It’s funny and tender and all the music he references was made by people going through their own shit and about how they used their music to save themselves. It’s a book about how we fall apart and how we put ourselves back together and you don’t have to know about music to be moved by it.

By James Acaster,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Perfect Sound Whatever as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

*The Sunday Times Bestseller*

The brand new memoir from James Acaster: cult comedian, bestselling author of Classic Scrapes, undercover cop, receiver of cabbages.

PERFECT SOUND WHATEVER is a love letter to the healing power of music, and how one man's obsessive quest saw him defeat the bullshit of one year with the beauty of another. Because that one man is James Acaster, it also includes tales of befouling himself in a Los Angeles steakhouse, stealing a cookie from Clint Eastwood, and giving drunk, unsolicited pep talks to urinating strangers.

January, 2017
James Acaster wakes up heartbroken and alone in New…


Book cover of W-3

Mikita Brottman Author Of Couple Found Slain: After a Family Murder

From my list on psychiatric hospital by women who spent time there.

Why am I passionate about this?

In addition to being an author, I’m a literature professor and a psychoanalyst; I have worked in prisons and psychiatric hospitals. I have also been a psychiatric patient. I’m fascinated by narrative, and by the way we use language to make sense of our own experiences and to connect with other people.

Mikita's book list on psychiatric hospital by women who spent time there

Mikita Brottman Why did Mikita love this book?

This is a recent reissue of a book first published in 1974 and long out of print. Bette Howland gives us a vivid and honest account of her time in Ward 3 of a Chicago psychiatric hospital after a serious suicide attempt in her late twenties. I was moved by the moments of communion, camaraderie and even comedy the narrator shares with her fellow patients. Having said that, Ward 3 is a terrible place. The “treatments” are also punishments. The narrator confronts the ward’s alienation with clear, unsentimental detachment. I was absorbed by her struggle to retain an element of dignity in the face of the hospital’s fatally indifferent bureaucracy. 

By Bette Howland,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked W-3 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An extraordinary portrait of a brilliant mind on the brink: A new edition of the 1974 memoir by the author of the acclaimed collection Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage. With an introduction by Yiyun Li.

“For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin—real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way. Something to be got through first, some unfinished business; time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life could begin. At last it had dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”

From the author of…


Book cover of Love and Death in the American Novel

Marc Egnal Author Of A Mirror for History: How Novels and Art Reflect the Evolution of Middle-Class America

From my list on American intellectual history.

Why am I passionate about this?

Growing up in Philadelphia, with school and family visits to landmarks like Independence Hall and Betsy Ross’s house, I’ve long been interested in American history. That led me, eventually, to graduate school and my profession as a historian. At the same time, I have greatly enjoyed reading American novelists, such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Willa Cather, and James Baldwin, as well as the works of thinkers like Ralph Waldo Emerson and W.E.B. DuBois. The sweet spot combining those two interests has been American intellectual history.

Marc's book list on American intellectual history

Marc Egnal Why did Marc love this book?

Time and again, I come back to this work of criticism because of its daring arguments. Fiedler attempts nothing less than a comparison of American fiction with English, French, and Russian literature.

If some of his arguments will leave you scratching your head, others will make you look at novels from an entirely different perspective and provide a new understanding of works you thought you knew. 

By Leslie Fiedler,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Love and Death in the American Novel as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Lengthy analyses of Moby Dick, The Scarlet Letter, and Huckleberry Finn help to illustrate the duplicity with which themes of love and death are treated in American fiction


Book cover of Night Shift

Monique Gliozzi Author Of Facets of the Past: No Dark Deed Goes Unpunished

From my list on combining the paranormal and psychopathy.

Why am I passionate about this?

Let me tell you a little about myself. I was born in Dublin, and being the daughter of a diplomat afforded me to experience different cultures. Since childhood my fascination with the unknown caused me to gravitate towards stories related to hauntings. I shared this interest with my maternal grandparents, who contributed to my education by telling me ghost stories (some true whilst others are fictional). Tales of haunted castles were my favorite, which is reflected in my book. In later life, my own experiences with the paranormal cemented the notion of the unexplained and the thin veil between us and those departed.

Monique's book list on combining the paranormal and psychopathy

Monique Gliozzi Why did Monique love this book?

A brilliant collection of horror stories, my favourite being Sometimes They Come Back.

I recommend this ghostly tale for its depiction of the fine line between the spirit realm and the world we live in. The narrative of earth-bound ghosts and their determination to exact revenge on the living bringing forth a fierce battle between good and evil. The latter played on my mind as I empathised with the main character’s psychological struggle with recapitulated past events, leaving those around him to question his sanity.

By Stephen King,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Night Shift as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Stephen King’s first collection of short stories, originally published in 1978, showcases the darkest depths of his brilliant imagination and will "chill the cockles of many a heart" (Chicago Tribune). Night Shift is the inspiration for over a dozen acclaimed horror movies and television series, including Children of the Corn , Chapelwaite, and Lawnmower Man.

Here we see mutated rats gone bad (“Graveyard Shift”); a cataclysmic virus that threatens humanity (“Night Surf,” the basis for The Stand); a possessed, evil lawnmower (“The Lawnmower Man”); unsettling children from the heartland (“Children of the Corn”); a smoker who will try anything to…


Book cover of I Will Rot Without You

Roland Blackburn Author Of Seventeen Names for Skin

From my list on body horror to rot your mind.

Why am I passionate about this?

Obsession and mania have never been far from my heart, and with that has always come the certainty that everything we build can fall apart. I’ve always been fascinated by our frail bodies; what they can do, what they can’t, and the limits we can all be pushed to. People are forced to their extremes, day after day, and that this can happen to anybody at any time has always attracted my imagination. Something shatters. Bones break. Flesh twists. And, in itself, the incident is never the end. Afterward, what’s left? This question haunts me through every word that I write.

Roland's book list on body horror to rot your mind

Roland Blackburn Why did Roland love this book?

Crawling with cockroaches, mold, and touching moments, this dark love story of a protagonist unable to move on and his neighbor whose boyfriend is so controlling he’s stitched himself to her is a bizarro classic. I’ve lived with both pretty abhorrent apartments and breakups, and the grotesque escalation of the novel as both the protagonist and their dwelling fall apart get under my skin in the best way possible. Full of nightmarish yet recognizable characters (maybe this says a lot about me), the plot propels itself forward through so many twists and turns that the ending is a true surprise. Slater’s ability to fascinate and repulse in equal measure is on full display as he explores the nightmare side of relationships, and I can’t help but sympathize with the protagonist as their heartbreak causes a brutal and irrecoverable decay.

You can’t know where this one is going. Even as the…

By Danger Slater,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked I Will Rot Without You as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

WHEN THE WORLD FALLS APART AND YOUR BODY STARTS TO ROT, LET THE ROACHES LEAD.

Meet Ernie. His life is a mess. Gretchen's gone, and the apartment they once shared in this grey, grim city is now overrun with intelligent mold and sinister bugs.

Then his neighbor Dee shows up, so smart and lovely. If he can just get past the fact that her jealous boyfriend could reach out of her blouse and punch him in the face at any moment, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship.

Unfortunately for all involved, a Great Storm is coming and…


Book cover of The River Knows

Dorothy A. Bell Author Of Waltz on the Big Meadow

From my list on historical romance on dilemmas and history.

Why am I passionate about this?

The books I read have to draw me in like a good movie. It has to be relatable as far as characters and plot go. I want to see it, smell it, and taste it. We’ve moved a lot, and every time we’ve moved, we always check out the local history and geology. There are so many stories to tell. I’ll see the name of a road, a creek, or a mountain, and it will spark a story within me, like seeing a really good movie with great actors. 

Dorothy's book list on historical romance on dilemmas and history

Dorothy A. Bell Why did Dorothy love this book?

The story plopped me down into the plot within the first few pages. I love this Victorian time period. It’s dark and moody without being threatening. You can almost smell the grungy, wet streets and the smog. Lots of twists and turns and characters that are both menacing and charmingly deceptive.

I wasn’t given the answer to all the questions right away, but I liked that, even though I probably could have guessed where it was going. I like a strong plot and strong female characters with their own agenda. And men who can admire, fall in love with, and not be threatened by smart women.

By Amanda Quick,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The River Knows as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From New York Times bestselling author Amanda Quick comes a delightful romp filled with breathtaking suspense, dazzling wit, and steamy Victorian passion...

The first kiss occurred in a dimly-lit hallway on the upper floor of Elwin Hastings's grand house. Louisa Bryce never saw it coming. Of course, handsome, wealthy Anthony Stalbridge couldn't possibly have had romantic intentions. The kiss was merely meant to distract the armed guard about to catch the two unlikely sleuths. After all, the only thing these two interlopers have in common is a passionate interest in uncovering the dastardly secrets of Mr. Hastings-a prominent member of…


Book cover of The Tender Land: A Family Love Story

Melanie Bishop Author Of My So-Called Ruined Life

From my list on inhabiting unthinkable loss.

Why am I passionate about this?

When my father died in 1998, bladder cancer, I was 41 years old and privileged to be his primary caregiver for five weeks. My first major loss and it was as though a mack truck had been driven through my chest. Ten years later, my mother died, after nine years of dementia, which is like losing someone twice. That was a more ravaging grief. Twelve years later, my nephew died, a month away from his 36th birthday. And in 2022, one close friend of mine took his own life and another died of cancer at age 57. Grief is the subject I gravitate toward in the books I read and the essays I write. 

Melanie's book list on inhabiting unthinkable loss

Melanie Bishop Why did Melanie love this book?

It is fair to say that this is my favorite memoir I’ve ever read. I’m shocked it didn’t make bestseller lists when it came out. Finneran is a poet, who through the language, attention to detail, and strategic pacing of key scenes, makes readers see and feel what she wants us to see and feel. This book offered me, as a teacher of college writing, numerous perfect examples of how scenes can be developed to drop readers into a moment, to transport them. Finneran focuses the memoir on how her brother’s suicide affected her whole, big, Catholic family. The Tender Land, a Family Love Story is a portrait of a family who has lost something huge. Devastating content aside, this is a memoir that you will delight in, sentence by sentence, for its language. Highly recommend this remarkable book. 

By Kathleen Finneran,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Tender Land as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An extraordinary memoir of a family haunted by tragedy: “I’ve read very few contemporary novels that can rival Finneran’s nonfiction.” —Jonathan Franzen

A superb portrait of family life, this “absorbing and thoughtful” memoir is a love story unlike any other (Library Journal). The Finnerans—Irish Catholic parents with five children in St. Louis—are a seemingly unexceptional family whose lives are upended by a catastrophic event: the suicide of the author’s fifteen-year-old younger brother after being publicly humiliated in junior high school.
 
A gentle, handsome boy, Sean Finneran was a straight-A student and gifted athlete, especially treasured by every member of his…


Book cover of Convenience Store Woman
Book cover of Naïve. Super
Book cover of Set My Heart to Five

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