Maybe You Should Talk to Someone
Score Modern
What it's about
Lori Gottlieb is a Los Angeles therapist whose world comes crashing down after a sudden breakup, and she ends up in therapy herself, with Wendell, a quirky, cardigan-wearing therapist who turns out to be anything but ordinary. As she helps her own patients, including a self-absorbed Hollywood producer and a young newlywed facing a terminal diagnosis, she learns what therapy looks like from both chairs.
Why it's worth reading
It spent 54 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists. It's funny, wise and honest, and many readers say it changed how they think about therapy.
You'll love it if you liked
The Body Keeps the Score, When Breath Becomes Air or Educated: A Memoir
Good to know
It moves between Gottlieb's story and her patients', like a novel with several plots. Some of the patients' stories are very sad.
Quick answers
Is Maybe You Should Talk to Someone worth reading?
Yes. It spent 54 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists. It ranks #281 of the 2,819 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 82.0 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Maybe You Should Talk to Someone about?
Lori Gottlieb is a Los Angeles therapist whose world comes crashing down after a sudden breakup, and she ends up in therapy herself, with Wendell, a quirky, cardigan-wearing therapist who turns out to be anything but ordinary. As she helps her own patients, including a self-absorbed Hollywood producer and a young newlywed facing a terminal diagnosis, she learns what therapy looks like from both chairs.
How long does it take to read Maybe You Should Talk to Someone?
About 11 hours (433 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Maybe You Should Talk to Someone?
If you liked it, try The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk, When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi or Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover.
By the numbers
- Readers94 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller67 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
54 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2019.
Where it ranks
- #23 of the 119 science and ideas books we rank
- #54 of the 290 memoirs and biographies we rank
- #146 of the 1,575 modern books we rank
- #281 of the 2,819 books we rank
Bestseller
- 54 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2019
Reads as
True story, Thought-provoking
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When Breath Becomes Air
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
Becoming
The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression