Feeling lonely? These eight books might help

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Psychologists, therapists and other experts share the works they recommend to people who are struggling to connect.

Psychologists, therapists and other experts share the works they recommend to people who are struggling to connect.

ILLUSTRATION: MONICA GARWOOD/NYTIMES

Anna Borges

NEW YORK – Reaching for a book might not be your first impulse when you feel lonely. Reading is a solitary pursuit, after all. But loneliness is rarely just about needing more connections.

“Many of my clients come in talking about loneliness as a lack of people in their lives,” said Ryan Howes, a clinical psychologist in Pasadena, California. “But after a little digging, we usually find there are plenty of people in their world.”

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