Recently a PhD student was talking about her anxiety building. (I’m not attributing the quotes because these are pretty common problems.)

Part of the problem was this:

I need to stop reading about the lack of jobs in humanities as I am not in humanities. Still makes me panic.
I think my anxiety is related to the pressure to look TT and I never wanted to do that from the beginning.

I suggested stopping reading the news and trying novels, even trashy novels. Someone else chimed in:

I started reading novels but kept ending up with dystopias and novels with sad endings. So I went back to news.
Trust me, I didn’t pick them intentionally. I was looking for goodness & light. Taking recommendations.

Being the sort of person I am, I solicited suggestions. I will attribute the suggestions because anyone who is willing to suggest uplifting stuff to read is worth a follow on Twitter :-)

• @sarahthesheepu suggests anything by Bill Bryson. I will add that if you like Bill Bryson you may also like @charlieconnelly. He isn’t the same but he gets compared enough to be worth checking out. And I like Charlie.
• @qui_oui recommends Harry Potter. From a previous conversation I know she also recommends the movies as a light pick-me-up.
• @charlieconnelly recommends P.G. Wodehouse, a recommendation seconded by @WorstProfEver. Charlie also recommends this article to further convince you.
• @trentmkays recommends anything by David Sedaris, like “When We Are Engulfed in Flames.”
• @elebelfiore finds a way to keep you in the academic milieu but brighten your day anyway. “‘Small World’ by David Lodge… Smiling your way to a sense of perspective (academics not superior beings, in fact flawed etc.)”
• @AvenSarah suggests the Amelia Peabody stories by Elizabeth Peters, which also have audio versions if that suits.
• @picky_girl is “totally in love with Patricia Wentworth’s Miss Silver series from the 30s/40s. Super fun.”
• @DocSteph suggests the Stephanie Plum series. “As far away from phd as possible. Sex, mysteries, comedy in [New] Jersey”

Well, that should keep you going. I mostly didn’t link to booksellers. Your public library should be a good source for these.

If anyone has more suggestions, please add them in the comments. You might get sent to moderation if you include a link, but please do so to make it easier to find the things you recommend. I’ll try to approve things quickly.

This post was edited July 14, 2015.