February 15th is Singles Awareness Day, an unofficial holiday in which the single people of the world can celebrate love in all forms — self-love, platonic love, familial love — not just romantic.
If you’re so inclined to celebrate this awesome day (or even if you’re a little down about your singlehood), then here are some books you just might love. Read on …
Everything I Know About Love
by Dolly Alderton
When it comes to the trials and triumphs of becoming a grown up, journalist Dolly Alderton has seen and tried it all. In her memoir, she vividly recounts falling in love, wrestling with self-sabotage, finding a job, throwing a socially disastrous Rod-Stewart themed house party, getting drunk, getting dumped, realising that Ivan from the corner shop is the only man you’ve ever been able to rely on, and finding that that your mates are always there at the end of every messy night out.
Buy it here
Single Pringle
by Stacey June
We’re encouraged to be comfortable doing our own thing these days. Female empowerment! Be independent! But many of us have yet to master the tools for living happily on our own. Stacey June is here to help! With the assistance of a whole slew of experts, a wild variety of romantic and sexual partners, a few fairly average boyfriends, and some healers, yogis and ‘kumbaya’ moments, Stacey dives into the principles of being comfortable alone, living independently and going after every opportunity in life.
Buy it here
Heartsick
by Jessie Stephens
When Jessie Stephens went through a difficult breakup, she started to look for books or stories that would reflect her experience and perhaps give her some hope for the future. There were plenty of guide books in the ‘101 tips to cure a broken heart’ vein, but what Jessie wanted were stories. She wanted to read about other people’s experiences, to see the universalities, and to feel connected to others who were struggling in a similar way. Now she’s written the book she needed to read – a close-up, compelling narrative nonfiction account of many lows and occasional surprising highs of heartbreak.
Buy it here
Ladies, We Need To Talk
by Yumi Stynes and Claudine Ryan
The ABC podcast Ladies, We Need To Talk has been tearing open the sealed section on life for years, but host Yumi Stynes and co-creator Claudine Ryan know there’s still way more to say. In this book, they dive further into the podcast topics that resonated most with sensitivity, hilarity and serious smarts, and open the conversation further to include personal stories from listeners.
Buy it here
What a Time to be Alone
by Chidera Eggerue (AKA The Slumflower)
In What A Time To Be Alone, The Slumflower will be your life guru, confidante and best friend. She’ll show you that being alone is not just okay: it’s just about the best freaking thing that’s ever happened to you. As she says, ‘You’re bad as hell and you were made with intention.’ It’s about time you realised. Peppered with insightful Igbo proverbs from Chidera’s Nigerian mother and full of her own original artwork, What A Time To Be Alone will help you navigate the modern world. We can all decide our own fates and Chidera shows us how, using a three-part approach filled with sass, wisdom and charm.
Buy it here
Slow Pleasure
by Euphemia Russell
We live in a world of breakneck speed and it can be intimidating and nearly impossible to slow down. In this crisis of pace, we are often disembodied, disconnected, and forget that we even live in a body! In this beautiful book, pleasure coach and educator Euphemia Russell (they/them) teaches us that, despite our collective challenges, we can cultivate pleasure and connection.
Buy it here
Big Friendship
by Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman
A close friendship is one of the most important relationships a human life can contain. But most people don’t talk about what it takes to stay close for the long haul. Now two friends, Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman, tell the story of their messy and life-affirming Big Friendship in this honest and hilarious book. Through interviews with friends and experts, they also come to understand that their struggles are not unique. This book is a call to value your friendships in all of their complexity, to actively choose them and sometimes, fight for them.
Buy it here
The Lonely City
by Olivia Laing
When Olivia Laing moved to New York City in her mid-thirties, she found herself inhabiting loneliness on a daily basis. Increasingly fascinated by this most shameful of experiences, she began to explore the lonely city by way of art. Moving fluidly between the works and lives of some of the city’s most compelling artists, Laing conducts an electric, dazzling investigation into what it means to be alone, illuminating not only the causes of loneliness but also how it might be resisted and redeemed.
Buy it here
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