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We made it to May, which means we’re almost halfway through the year—and if your calendar looks anything like mine, it’s filling up fast. From professional obligations to family dinners and surprise vet visits (looking at you, Roxy), life rarely gives us a clean break. That’s why this month’s reading challenge theme couldn’t be more timely: Mental Health and Balance.
Now, I don’t know about you, but the phrase work-life balance always makes me think of a scale that never quite settles. Just when one side evens out, the other tips. That’s real life. Balance isn’t about perfection—it’s about noticing when things are off and gently nudging yourself back to center. And books, as always, help us do that.
Why This Theme Matters
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and it’s a perfect reminder to check in with ourselves. Not just emotionally, but creatively, spiritually, and mentally. For those of us who are caregivers, library professionals, educators, or just really good at putting others first, mental health can end up at the bottom of the to-do list. This month, let’s bring it back to the top.
What to Read
This month, choose a book that helps you explore, strengthen, or reflect on mental well-being and life balance. That might mean a self-help book with strategies you can apply—or a novel that makes you feel seen and understood. Here are a few suggestions:
📚 Nonfiction Picks
- Bittersweet by Susan Cain – A beautifully written reflection on why embracing both the sorrow and the joy in life helps us live more fully.
- The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris – A practical guide to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), perfect if you’ve ever felt stuck chasing happiness.
- Wintering by Katherine May – A comforting, lyrical reminder that it’s okay to slow down and take rest seriously.
- Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski – A powerful (and research-backed) read about the stress cycle and how to actually complete it.
📖 Fiction Favorites
- Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman – A quirky and heartfelt novel about loneliness, healing, and what happens when we allow ourselves to connect.
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig – A speculative journey through the lives we could have lived, and what it means to find purpose and peace right where we are.
- Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt – A surprisingly tender story of grief, connection, and an octopus with more emotional intelligence than some humans.
- Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore – A time-traveling twist on self-discovery and living in the moment, even when the moment feels completely out of sync.
- Anxious People by Fredrik Backman – A humorous, deeply human story about strangers brought together by a failed bank robbery—and how compassion can surface in unexpected places.
Of course, feel free to pick something entirely different that speaks to your journey. Fiction, memoir, essays—it all counts.
How to Participate
You know the drill—pick a book that fits the theme, read it sometime this month, and reflect on what it taught you about your own balance. If you want to go deeper, ask yourself:
- What part of my life feels out of balance right now?
- What does rest look like for me—and am I getting enough of it?
- How does reading itself help me recharge?
You can post your thoughts in the comments or share your current read on social using #NotQuiteSuperhumanReads. Let’s lift each other up and remind ourselves: it’s okay to pause. It’s okay to recalibrate. And it’s more than okay to find support in a good book.
Here’s to finding your version of balance this May—whatever that looks like.
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📚 Looking for more book ideas? Check out past challenges and reading lists right here on the blog.
Because you’re not quite superhuman—and that’s more than okay. 💛
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For May’s book topic of mental health and balance, I chose to read about one of my favorite subjects – philosophy – something that both challenges and brightens my days.
I believe a key to mental health and balance lies in Socrates’ idea that “the examined life is one worth living.” Thinkers like Plato, Shakespeare, Emerson, and others seem to emphasize that the path to mental well-being involves kindness, helpfulness, goodwill, and especially a good sense of humor. These qualities seem just right for taking life – and its ups and downs – in stride.
I recently came across a delightful book that explores philosophy through jokes, at one of the Pratt Library branches near me. It’s titled Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar… by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein.
The book requires some prior knowledge to fully appreciate certain jokes. For example, the ancient wisdom of Heraclitus includes sayings like “Expect the unexpected, or you won’t find it” and “You can’t step into the same river twice.”
One joke reads: “By the way, a funny thing happened to me on the way here tonight— I stepped into the same river…twice!”
In the chapter on logic, you will find this joke:
A man walks into a pet store and asks to see the parrots. The store owner shows him two beautiful ones out on the floor.
“This one is $5,000 and the other is $10,000,” he says.
“Wow!” says the man. “What does the $5,000 one do?”
“This parrot can sing every aria Mozart wrote,” says the store owner.
“And the other?”
“He sings Wagner’s entire Ring cycle. There’s another parrot out back for $30,000.”
“Holy moley! What does he do?”
“Nothing that I’ve heard, but the other two call him ‘Maestro.’”