Can reading improve your health? Bibliotherapy says yes.

USA Today

03-05-2025

Can reading improve your health? Bibliotherapy says yes.
Reading as a hobby is inherently rooted in self-care – while you can do it with others around, it ultimately offers a moment to slow down and steep in a story.
But did you know it can actually be beneficial to your mental health? Enter bibliotherapy, the practice of using literature to heal.
Emely Rumble, a licensed clinical social worker, biblio/psychotherapist and professor at Queens College in New York, first encountered the term when she studied abroad in college. There, she found London's Poetry Pharmacy, which sells 'books chosen to address your mood or emotional ailment.'
Now, after nearly 15 years of prescribing literature on her own, Rumble's book 'Bibliotherapy in the Bronx' (out now from Simon & Schuster) aims to bring the therapy practice to those in need of comfort.
What is bibliotherapy?
It sounds like a buzzy wellness trend akin to 'rejection therapy' or 'apartners,' but in 'Bibliotherapy in the Bronx,' Rumble argues we've always used storytelling to make sense of 'who we are, where we've been, and the possibilities of where we can go.'
Have you ever read a book that seemed to read you? A character that felt like they were written straight from your mind or a plot that you could relate to a little too hard? Chances are, you were practicing bibliotherapy on your own.
In a clinical setting, bibliotherapy can be reactive or prescriptive. It can look like a therapist suggesting a book to their client, or a client bringing up a book that impacted them. In either scenario, books are used as a discussion tool to help better understand ourselves, our mental health and how we fit into the world. One systematic review published in 2017 found that bibliotherapy is effective in reducing depression symptoms over time.
You can incorporate bibliotherapy into your reading as well. It's a four-step process, Rumble explains:
Recognition: Emotionally connect with some aspect of the book Examination: Consider why you may have an emotional response to a character or concept Juxtaposition: Compare your life experience with a character's and put yourself in their shoes Self-application: Use this set of insights to examine how you feel about a situation, person or past trauma
'So much of the clinical process and therapy is making the unconscious, conscious and as human beings who live in a very production-driven, capitalist society, we don't have moments to pause and slow down,' Rumble says. 'One great thing about a reading practice is that it forces you to have to embody yourself, and it forces you to have to face yourself down with courage.'
Rumble has used books in her therapy practice to help clients understand bodily changes during menopause, challenges that come with depression and anxiety, come out as queer and heal from abandonment. Anyone can benefit from bibliotherapy, she says.
'A lot of folks would rather be at home reading or joining a book club than coming to therapy,' Rumble says. 'If therapists can be trained in this unique modality of incorporating literature as a therapeutic tool, there's a lot more people who will be willing to engage.'
How to incorporate bibliotherapy in your life
Making time for regular reading can seem like an uphill battle for those with busy lives, but setting a routine is an important step in using literature to heal. It's an intentional time to slow down and practice stillness.
Pencil in times where you can take a moment to read, whether it's on a lunch break, before bed, on your commute (audiobooks are great if you're driving) or first thing in the morning. Rumble recommends traveling with a book at all times, especially poetry, because it's a bite-sized, often meditative form to dive into.
She recommends clients keep a curated bedside stack of books – something 'nourishing' like a guided journal, religious text or poetry book and a few novels that you're interested in. This can help combat late-night doomscrolling.
It can also be helpful to find a reading community, whether that's belonging to a book club or reading with friends and neighbors at silent reading events.
Bibliotherapy is helpful for kids' emotional development, too
You might not think of it as therapy, but there's a good chance your childhood reads helped you develop an early understanding of your emotions and the world around you. 'A Bad Case of the Stripes' by David Shannon teaches kids to stay true to themselves rather than conform to peer pressure. 'Strega Nona' by Tomie dePaola can teach trust.
'We know, when you're in the business of building little people, how important emotional literacy is to cultivating a child's narrative exploration,' Rumble says. 'It really helps to get children thinking about really important aspects of who they are and who they want to become, and giving them the tools they need.'
Bibliotherapy can be helpful for kids dealing with mental health challenges like anxiety or depression. It can help them process big feelings. It can also teach them about the world. Rumble uses an example of a child asking about the war in Gaza.
'We're not going to explain the whole history of Palestine to an 8-year-old and help them understand what's happening from an adult perspective,' she says. 'Instead, let's find a book that talks a little bit about how everyone comes from a different part of the world or a different culture and all cultures matter. Let's give them some of the foundational language to understand the beauty in all of our cultures and center everybody's humanity as an entry point to them understanding that what they're seeing is really scary.'
In one instance described in the book, Rumble even used hip-hop to connect with a teen as a form of poetry bibliotherapy.
'When we listen to a song that matches the emotional tempo of what we're feeling, it's cathartic. It's healing,' she says. 'Sometimes we can't access the language, especially when we're hurting or traumatized or feeling overstimulated.'
Clare Mulroy is USA TODAY's Books Reporter, where she covers buzzy releases, chats with authors and dives into the culture of reading. Find her on Instagram, subscribe to our weekly Books newsletter or tell her what you're reading at [e-mail].