Yes, I was That Guy sobbing in the corner of the coffee shop. No, I’m not sorry.
Look, I didn’t plan on turning into a human puddle on a park bench while reading a paperback with a cracked spine. It just… happened. You know that moment when you’re so deep into a book that the world kind of melts away—and then the author wrecks you with a single sentence? Yeah. That.
Books have a dangerous power, and apparently, I like to flirt with emotional destruction in public spaces. Here’s a short, shame-free list of the books that made me cry in full view of strangers—and why I’d 100% do it again.
1. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Oh boy. I started this one thinking I was emotionally stable enough for a 700+ page literary drama about four friends in New York. I was so wrong. This book broke me in quiet, sneaky ways—little things at first. And then, somewhere around page 400, I was full-on sobbing into a napkin at a local café while trying to discreetly blow my nose like I wasn’t unraveling on a Thursday afternoon.
The writing is haunting. The trauma is relentless. And Jude? Don’t talk to me about Jude unless you want me to spiral again.
2. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
Yes, the title kind of spoils it, but no amount of mental prep saved me from the gut punch this book delivers. I read it in one sitting on a long train ride. Picture me: headphones in, hoodie up, trying to look cool while weeping silently as Rufus and Mateo live out their last day. Strangers absolutely noticed. One lady offered me a tissue. It was a moment.
It’s sad, yes—but also weirdly life-affirming. Which is such a Silvera move.
3. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
This one hits different if you know your Greek mythology—and by “hits,” I mean it launches a spear through your heart and twists it. I read most of it on my porch, but I made the very bad decision to finish it at the park. Let’s just say I looked like I was going through a breakup with someone named Patroclus, and I absolutely whispered “no” out loud like five times.
The prose is lyrical. The love is tender. The ending? Cruel. Beautiful. Unforgettable.
4. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Okay, this one is less “devastation” and more “crying because something is so pure it makes your heart ache.” I was on a plane, minding my own business, when Lucy (the Antichrist, by the way) said something heartbreakingly sweet and I just… lost it. Quiet tears. Very sniffly. I think the guy next to me thought I was terrified of flying. I wasn’t. I was just overwhelmed by wholesome queer found-family joy.
This book is basically a gentle hug that sneaks up and karate-chops your tear ducts.
5. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Existential crisis, party of one! I picked this up at the library and ended up reading half of it at a quiet diner during breakfast. Nora’s journey through all the lives she could have lived had me wiping my eyes between bites of French toast. The woman pouring coffee didn’t say anything, but she did keep refilling my mug like she understood the assignment.
It’s a hopeful book about regret, choices, and finding meaning in your current mess of a life—which is exactly what I needed that week.
6. If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
I brought this to the beach, thinking I was getting dark academia vibes and maybe some light murder. I was not emotionally prepared for the ending. Sand stuck to my tears. I looked like a character from a tragic coastal romance. But the writing? Absolutely stunning. Shakespearean without being pretentious. Dramatic in all the best ways.
Would I cry in public again for it? Yes. Even knowing what’s coming.
Crying in Public Is My New Superpower
There’s something weirdly cathartic about losing your composure over fictional people while surrounded by real ones. It’s like your soul just can’t contain itself, so it leaks out your eyeballs, and all the people in the coffee shop get front-row seats to your literary breakdown. But honestly? I kind of love it.
These books cracked me open in ways I didn’t expect, and if that means occasionally embarrassing myself at Panera Bread, so be it. I’d rather feel too much than not at all.
So yeah, I’ve been that guy crying on the train, at the airport, in the corner of a bookstore. And if you spot someone doing the same? Don’t judge—maybe just slide them a tissue and ask what they’re reading.
Because odds are… it’s worth it.
P.S. Got a book that emotionally destroyed you in public? Tell me. I probably want it.