“…laughing and Crying. You know it’s the same release.” – Joni Mitchell

“I laughed, I cried” is an oft-heard nutshell review given by readers and filmgoers alike. Both emotional responses can be therapeutic, stress relievers. As noted by Harvard Health : “Crying is an important safety valve, largely because keeping difficult feelings inside  — can be bad for our health… Popular culture, for its part, has always known the value of a good cry as a way to feel better.” In popular book culture, our featured titles this week aren’t necessarily tear-jerkers, but rather a special array of poignant fiction and nonfiction, for all ages, with “crying” in common: Continue reading →