When you want to cry, but can'tLike this list

22 items

• Where the Red Fern Grows

  Rawls, Wilson,

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  I am sure this wasn't the first book that made me cry, but it's definitely the first book in which my main memories of it involve so much crying. I remember my 5th grade teacher crying while reading it aloud to us, and then me crying while reading…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Seeing Ghosts

  a Memoir

  Chow, Kat,

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  From IndyPL_ElizabethS: Author Kat Chow is a Chinese American, this was another memoir about grief. Chow looses her mom to cancer when she is young. This book is her journey through grief and exploring her family's history from China and Hong Kong…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Doomsday Book

  Willis, Connie

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  More than once this book has reduced me to piles of incoherent sobbing. You would think I would expect it with the title but it starts so cheerfully you wouldn't have any idea how much emotion it's going to inspire by the end. This is the story of a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

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  From IndyPL_JaredW: Gasp! A movie that a librarian thought was better than the book (I promise, it's fairly rare). This movie is just weird, or perhaps quirky is a better word for it. The characters, every one of them, are all a bit odd, and even…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Remains of the Day

  Ishiguro, Kazuo, 1954-

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  I still to this day have NO IDEA how this book makes me cry so much. Let me give you a plot synopsis (SPOILER ALERT!!!) - a butler realizes the rich dude he works for is a jerk the end. How does Ishiguro make everyday life so filled with emotion and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Ugly Cry

  a Memoir

  Henderson, Danielle,

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  I love this memoir from Daniel Henderson - and it's title was prophetic, because I did ugly cry at certain points in her story. But good news! She grew up well-adjusted enough to write a memoir and be incredibly funny and fun. I have read this twice…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Fool's Errand

  Hobb, Robin

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  Robin Hobb's books have made me cry multiple times, but I decided to narrow it down to one book, one event that makes me cry sometimes still when I think about it. It's so sad that sometimes I'll just randomly think about it and my husband will ask…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dragons of Spring Dawning

  Weis, Margaret

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  Again in this beloved series from my childhood (this edition is a reprint, originally published in 1985) there are a few times I cried but this is the first one I clearly, clearly remember. The first book in this series is Dragons of Autumn…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Memory of Light

  Jordan, Robert, 1948-2007

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  I started reading this series in the 90s a couple of years after it started and I savored the ending when it was finally released 23 long years later. But yes, a series as epic as the Wheel of Time was bound to have emotionally charged moments and I…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Cryoburn

  Bujold, Lois McMaster

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  This is another one of my favorite series that I like to reread when I need comfort. These books are self-contained adventurous science fiction novels but really are meant to be read in something approaching a chronological order, and this one is…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

  DiCamillo, Kate

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  From IndyPL_LeahK: There are some books that are so good you recommend them to everyone you know, you gift them to family and friends, and you find yourself rereading them again and again. When my daughter came home after her teacher read it aloud…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Man Called Ove

  a Novel

  Backman, Fredrik, 1981-

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  Remember when the movie Up made us all cry? A Man Called Ove is like Up, but a book, and unfortunately without the talking dog. But there is a cat.

• Crying in H Mart

  a Memoir

  Zauner, Michelle,

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  I was completely unprepared for the gut punch that is this book. I just saw it on the lists, saw that everyone I knew had read or was reading it, and put a hold request on it. If you have ever been the caretaker for someone with a devastating…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Who Fears Death

  Okorafor, Nnedi

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  This is another novel that reduced me to tears. The main character suffers countless tragedies, but it does end on a hopeful note. Okorafor's prose is unflinching and powerful. The novel is in early development for a series at HBO.

• Arrival

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  From IndyPL_JaredW: Okay, this is another movie that I thought was better than the book but, seriously, I think there are only like 4 I have thought that about! If you're a sci-fi enthusiast who likes a lot of action, this movie isn't for you. If…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Let's Pretend This Never Happened

  (a Mostly True Memoir)

  Lawson, Jenny, 1973-

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  This is memoir has made me cry multiple times - through both laughter and sorrow. Jenny's struggles with her mental illness and physical ailments are sad, but it was her struggle to have a child that continuously brought me to tears. She writes…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Lost & Found

  a Memoir

  Schulz, Kathryn,

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  From IndyPL_ElizabethS: I loved this beautifully written book. It was divided into three chapters: Lost, Found and & (And). It tells the story of how author Kathryn Schulz lost her father, found her wife and then all the connections made with the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Klara and the Sun

  Ishiguro, Kazuo, 1954-

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  Yes, this is another Kazuo Ishiguro book. It did not make me cry as much as The Remains of the Day but it still did make me cry. Every book of his I've ever read has made me cry. Kleenex probably pays him a commission. This novel is set in a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Cokie

  a Life Well Lived

  Roberts, Steven V., 1943-

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  I had to add this one today because it made me cry while driving to work this morning. Cokie Roberts was a phenomenally influential journalist and author. She was also a loving wife, mother, and friend - which you will find out if you read (or…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Charlotte's Web

  White, E. B. (Elwyn Brooks), 1899-1985

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  Suggested by IndyPL_LeahK. I can't believe I forgot to put this in the first draft of this list! I still remember the first line of this novel, "Pa, where are you going with that ax?" One of my all-time favorite novels about the power of friendship…Read moreRead more of this annotation