Books
Novels, teaching stories and landmark textbooks on group and existential psychotherapy — translated into more than twenty languages. Buy on Amazon →
The 10 Best Irvin D. Yalom Books — Ranked
Ranked by our editorial team. As an Amazon Associate, this site earns from qualifying purchases.
When Nietzsche Wept
The international bestseller that imagines Friedrich Nietzsche in "talking cure" sessions with Josef Breuer — the perfect first Yalom book and winner of the Commonwealth Club Gold Medal for Best Fiction.
The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy
The definitive text on group psychotherapy for over fifty years — used in training programs worldwide and now in its sixth edition, co-written with Molyn Leszcz.
Love's Executioner
Ten absorbing true tales from the therapy room that made psychotherapy writing a literary genre — still the most-recommended introduction to what therapy actually feels like.
Existential Psychotherapy
Yalom's magnum opus on the four "ultimate concerns" — death, freedom, isolation and meaninglessness — the founding text of American existential psychotherapy.
The Gift of Therapy
Eighty-five bite-size chapters distilling thirty-five years of clinical wisdom — an open letter to a new generation of therapists and their patients.
Becoming Myself
Yalom turns his therapeutic gaze on himself — from a Washington, D.C. immigrant childhood to Stanford professorship and worldwide literary fame.
Staring at the Sun
A compassionate guide to overcoming the terror of death — how confronting mortality can wake us up to a richer, more engaged life.
Creatures of a Day
Ten new tales of psychotherapy written in Yalom's ninth decade — patients and therapist alike wrestling with life's brevity and finding meaning in it.
Lying on the Couch
A wry, suspenseful novel that pulls back the curtain on the therapist's side of the couch — boundaries, temptation and the messy humanity of healers.
Momma and the Meaning of Life
Six tales — four true, two fiction — probing love, loss and the mother-bond, including the beloved "Seven Advanced Lessons in the Therapy of Grief."
Compare the Books
| # | Book | Type | First published | Best for | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | When Nietzsche Wept | Novel | 1992 | Readers new to Yalom | 9.6/10 | BUY |
| 2 | The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy | Textbook | 1970 / 6th ed. 2020 | Therapists & students | 9.7/10 | BUY |
| 3 | Love's Executioner | Case Stories | 1989 | Curious general readers | 9.5/10 | BUY |
| 4 | Existential Psychotherapy | Textbook | 1980 | Deep theoretical grounding | 9.5/10 | BUY |
| 5 | The Gift of Therapy | Guide | 2002 | New & training therapists | 9.4/10 | BUY |
| 6 | Becoming Myself | Memoir | 2017 | Fans of the author | 9.2/10 | BUY |
| 7 | Staring at the Sun | Guide | 2008 | Confronting mortality | 9.1/10 | BUY |
| 8 | Creatures of a Day | Case Stories | 2015 | Love's Executioner fans | 9.0/10 | BUY |
| 9 | Lying on the Couch | Novel | 1996 | A gripping therapy novel | 9.0/10 | BUY |
| 10 | Momma and the Meaning of Life | Case Stories | 1999 | Stories of grief & meaning | 8.9/10 | BUY |
All Books — Novels & Teaching Stories
Lying on the Couch
Becoming Myself
Creatures of a Day
When Nietzsche Wept
Spinoza Problem
Momma & the Meaning of Life
Love’s Executioner
Non-Fiction & Textbooks
Theory and Practice of Psychotherapy
Yalom Reader
Gift of Therapy
Inpatient Group Psychotherapy
Staring at the Sun
Existential Psychotherapy
// CATEGORY NAV
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Teaching Novel and Stories
A Matter of Death and Life
Irvin Yalom and Marilyn Yalom, 2021
Basic Books, 2011
Basic Books, 1996
Becoming Myself; A Psychiatrist’s Memoir
Basic Books, 2017
Creatures of a Day; And Other Tales of Psychotherapy
Basic Books, 2015
HarperCollins, 2005
HarperCollins, 1992
Basic Books, 2012
Basic Books, 1999
Basic Books, 1989
Non-Fiction Works
The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy
Basic Books, 2020
The Yalom Reader
Edited by Ben Yalom
Basic Books, 1997
Every Day Gets a Little Closer
Basic Books, 1974
HarperCollins, 2005
Jossey-Bass, 2008
Books about Irvin Yalom
by Jeffrey Berman, 2019
Irvin D. Yalom: On Psychotherapy and the Human Condition (Working Biographies)
by Ruthellen Josselson Ph.D., 2007