It’s been a long couple of years, hasn’t it? And I don’t know about you, but I’m still struggling a bit to come back to life after years of staying home, working virtually in the basement and just generally keeping to myself at home. 

I’ve been doing some soul searching, reading everything I can on the power of joy and happiness and devouring fiction stories where the characters can teach me a thing or two about reclaiming our lives and finding joy in the process. 

I’ve found some excellent tiles and I’m here to share them with you. 

Below, you’ll find the ten books that have made their way to my bookshelf because they are sparking joy. And not in the get-rid-of-everything-we-don’t-need-with-Marie-Kondo sort of joy, but the let’s-remember-what’s-important-and-have-the-confidence-needed-to-make-important-changes-and-celebrate kind of joy. 

I’m here for it in all in sorts of genres: personal development, adult fiction, middle grade and young adult and even a picture book you MUST read. Here they are with a blend of my own reviews and the descriptions from Goodreads.

Just click on the image or title to see the book on my Amazon link or browse my collection on Bookshop instead. And remember…if you’re a member of my Get Lit(erate) community, you’ll get even more book lists and podcast episodes to add to your TBR stack this month.

Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness by Ingrid Fetell Lee

In Joyful, designer Ingrid Fetell Lee explores how the seemingly mundane spaces and objects we interact with every day have surprising and powerful effects on our mood. Drawing on insights from neuroscience and psychology, she explains why one setting makes us feel anxious or competitive while another fosters acceptance and delight–and, most importantly, she reveals how we can harness the power of our surroundings to live fuller, healthier, and truly joyful lives.

Laundry Love: Finding Joy in a Common Chore Hardcover by Patric Richardson

Doing laundry is rarely anyone’s favorite task. But to Patric Richardson, laundry isn’t just fun—it’s a way of life. After years of running Laundry Camp at the Mall of America for thousands of eager learners, he’s ready to share his tips, tricks, and hacks—bringing surprise to this commonly dreaded chore.

Don’t Overthink It: Make Easier Decisions, Stop Second-Guessing, and Bring More Joy to Your Life by Anne Bogel

I am plagued by decision fatigue by the end of each day and it has really taken a toll on my physical and mental well-being. I overthink EVERYTHING. But Anne finally made me realize I can actually do something about that. Filled with important information, compelling quotes and vignettes that instantly reminded me of my own life, this book was a breath of fresh air. Sure, it was focused on a pretty intense topic, overthinking, but rather than shame and correct, Anne sympathized and encouraged. I’m leaving this book armed with the tools I need to tackle my overthinking and am eager to get started. I’ll start by shifting my routines to rituals and embracing simple abundance. So, while Anne started as a mentor for my reading life, she is now a mentor for living a life well lived.

Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood by Kwame Mbalia

Black boy joy is…

Picking out a fresh first-day-of-school outfit.
Saving the universe in an epic intergalactic race.
Finding your voice—and your rhymes—during tough times.
Flying on your skateboard like nobody’s watching.

And more! From seventeen acclaimed Black male and non-binary authors comes a vibrant collection of stories, comics, and poems about the power of joy and the wonders of Black boyhood.

Long Road to the Circus Hardcover by Betsy Bird

In this story, we meet 12-year old Suzy and her family as they live the farming life in Michigan long ago. While everyone else is satisfied with living at home for all of their days, Suzy is not. She has a dream for something bigger: to see the world. Itching to find a way to make it happen, she starts working with her Uncle on Madame Marantette’s farm, a former celebrity with a world-renowned circus. Completely unexpected, but also completely meant to be, Suzy learns to ride an ostrich to help Madame Marantette earn a world record. And it turns out that this is exactly what Suzy needs to discover her dreams and grab onto them with her vice-like grip. Suzy is a small girl with a big mind of her own, taking risks and demonstrating the kind of grit we all need to stay true to ourselves.

In Five Years: A Novel by Rebecca Serle

When Type-A Manhattan lawyer Dannie Kohan is asked where she sees herself in five years at the most important interview of her career, she has a meticulously crafted answer at the ready. Later, after nailing her interview and accepting her boyfriend’s marriage proposal, Dannie goes to sleep knowing she is right on track to achieve her five-year plan.

But when she wakes up, she’s suddenly in a different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and beside a very different man., five years in the future.

Brimming with joy and heartbreak, In Five Years is an unforgettable love story that reminds us of the power of loyalty, friendship, and the unpredictable nature of destiny.

Eat Pray Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert

Around the time Elizabeth Gilbert turned thirty, she went through an early-onslaught midlife crisis. She went through a divorce, a crushing depression, another failed love, and the eradication of everything she ever thought she was supposed to be. To recover from all this, Gilbert took a radical step. In order to give herself the time and space to find out who she really was and what she really wanted, she got rid of her belongings, quit her job, and undertook a yearlong journey around the world—all alone. Eat, Pray, Love is the absorbing chronicle of that year.

Love & Saffron: A Novel of Friendship, Food, and Love by Kim Fay

When twenty-seven-year-old Joan Bergstrom sends a fan letter–as well as a gift of saffron–to fifty-nine-year-old Imogen Fortier, a life-changing friendship begins. Joan lives in Los Angeles and is just starting out as a writer for the newspaper food pages. Imogen lives on Camano Island outside Seattle, writing a monthly column for a Pacific Northwest magazine, and while she can hunt elk and dig for clams, she’s never tasted fresh garlic–exotic fare in the Northwest of the sixties. As the two women commune through their letters, they build a closeness that sustains them through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the assassination of President Kennedy, and the unexpected in their own lives.

Hello Sunshine by Laura Dave

Sunshine Mackenzie is living the dream—she’s a culinary star with millions of fans, a line of #1 bestselling cookbooks, and a devoted husband happy to support her every endeavor.

And then she gets hacked.

When Sunshine’s secrets are revealed, her fall from grace is catastrophic. She loses the husband, her show, the fans, and her apartment. She’s forced to return to the childhood home—and the estranged sister—she’s tried hard to forget. But what Sunshine does amid the ashes of her own destruction may well save her life.

Joy by Corrinne Averiss

Fern’s Nanna has not been herself of late. And when Mum remarks that all the joy seems to have gone out of her life, Fern decides to fetch the joy back. With her catching-kit at the ready, she goes to the park and finds joy in all sorts of unusual places. Whooooshh!

But Fern soon realizes that joy doesn’t fit in a bag, or a box or a tin! How will she manage to bring some back to Nanna?

These ten joyful books are either front and center on display on my bookshelf or waiting patiently for me in my TBR backet. Which book will you read next? Let me know in the comments!