What is Bibliotherapy and How Can It Help Your Child?

Have you ever watched your child disappear into a book and emerge from it somehow lighter, somehow more themselves, then you have already witnessed bibliotherapy at work.

Bibliotherapy is the practice of using books to support emotional wellbeing and mental health. The word comes from the Greek biblion meaning book and therapeia meaning healing. It is not a new idea. Ancient Greeks inscribed the words "healing place for the soul" above their library doors. Today, it is used in hospitals, schools, prisons and therapeutic settings around the world.

The basic principle is simple. When a reader encounters a character who shares their grief, their anxiety, their confusion or their fear, something shifts. They feel less alone. They find language for emotions they could not previously name. Psychologists call this experience bibliotherapy's three core processes: identification, catharsis and insight.

Identification happens when the reader recognises themselves in a character. Catharsis happens when reading about the character's experience allows the reader to release pent-up emotions safely. Insight happens when the reader gains a new understanding of their own situation through the character's journey.

For children and young people specifically, bibliotherapy offers something uniquely powerful. Many young people lack the vocabulary to articulate what they are feeling. Books give them that vocabulary before they need to use it in conversation.

It is important to note that bibliotherapy is not a replacement for professional mental health support. It is a complement to it, an accessible, affordable and deeply human tool that any parent, teacher or caregiver can offer a struggling young person.

The Harbour Library was built on this foundation. Every book in our collection has been selected for its bibliotherapy potential, its capacity to meet a young reader exactly where they are and offer them something they need.

Find your child's book today at www.theharbourlibrary.com

-Olapeju Okungbowa

References

- Brewster, L. (2008). The reading remedy: Bibliotherapy in practice. Aplis, 21(4), 172-177.

- Cohen, L.J. (1994). Bibliotherapy: A valid treatment modality. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 32*(9), 40-44.

- Forgan, J.W. (2002). Using bibliotherapy to teach problem solving. Intervention in School and Clinic, 38 (2), 75-82.

- Jack, S.J., & Ronan, K.R. (2008). Bibliotherapy: Practice and research. School Psychology International, 29(2), 161-182.