No Such Thing as Normal: From the author of Glorious Rock Bottom

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Gordon also mentions that she started this book in lockdown, which to be honest, I was not surprised to read. The Anxiety Sisters' Survival Guide: Manage Worry, Panic, and Fear and Become Hopeful, Connected, and (Anxiously) Happy tried to cover every possible anxiety symptom and treatment option, which became quite overwhelming. As someone who suffers with OCD myself, it’s something you wouldn’t want anyone else to have knowing how debilitating it can be on your life but reading the thoughts that Bryony has and being able to relate to them makes it refreshing to realise you are not alone. I have read all of Bryony Gordon's books and I always find them a bit hit and miss - but I absolutely loved this book. I appreciate Bryony for sharing her personal experiences and breaking down mental health into a daily healing process: looking at everyday interactions and tasks as a place of healing and not focusing on the large tasks.

The books featured on this site are aimed primarily at readers aged 13 or above and therefore you must be 13 years or over to sign up to our newsletter. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. It also presupposes that everyone's experience of mental illness has a coherent narrative structure, which I highly doubt. It certainly got me thinking about mental health and how generalisable advice about it can reasonably be. This was a really genuine, empathetic, and realistic mental health guide and I really, really adore that the author included her own experiences with illnesses OTHER than anxiety/depression.It’s written in a way that assumes the reader is nearing or has reached crisis point, and says that by picking up the book, they care enough to make a change to their mental well-being. The book also helped me with coping mechanisms to combat the little voice in my head that revels in my moments of self-defeat and negativity. We want to educate others on how disabilities may affect a person, yet it isn’t the only thing that defines them.

Bryony has such a nice tone to her writing that it feels like you are reading the advice of a close friend. Filled with agencies and charities that can help in any situation, humor as well as hard hitting facts, this is a book that stands out on the crowded self help shelves. those who live with mental health struggles or for those who just want to educate themselves more about the subject.

What I love about this book is the fact there is so much information on how and where to get help and support which is very much needed in the world right now. Normal” is relative to each individual because we all filter the world through our own lenses and system of belief. I remember thinking "oh, bright cover, I like it" and that's about it when I saw this book 🤣 But with the bright cover, comes a very nice guide to mental health. Exploring day to day anxiety, stress and intrusive thoughts, Bryony tackles worry head-on and provides tools and tips for how to manage it.

A practical guide to mental health from leading mental health campaigner and bestselling author, Bryony Gordon. I’ve also stopped judging silly little things that seemed odd to me—like how the Chinese eat tomatoes with sugar because, to them, the cherry tomato is not a vegetable, but a fruit. As an Eastern-European woman, I was raised to believe “summer beauty” was all about getting a nice, sexy chocolate-like complexion.

I share quite a few traits with Gordon but this book made me realise the thing that I already knew with acknowledgement - that my rational side is usually louder.