YA Recommendations For Every Girl on HBO’s Girls

Hannah Horvath (Lena Dunham): OCD Love Story, by Corey Ann Haydu
Dear Hannah, although you haven’t exhibited major symptoms lately, OCD isn’t something that magically vanishes, and it occurs to us that your relationship with Fran may have been doomed because he doesn’t appear to harbor any similar issues. Perhaps finding a friend or boyfriend who personally relates to your mental health challenges and displays a similarly unique view of the world would be good for you. In the brilliant OCD Love Story, Bea and Beck meet in group therapy and come to learn compulsions can’t always be controlled—but the people in your corner who truly “get” you can help you feel less alone.

Shoshanna Shapiro (Zosia Mamet): Tokyo Heist, by Diana Renn
Oh, Shosh. Your love/hate relationship with Japan was endlessly entertaining—especially your job at the cat café—but the loneliness of being an expat isn’t easy. Perhaps Tokyo Heist could help you remember the initial delight you felt living in the land of the rising sun. In the book, 16-year-old Violet, a budding artist with a crush on her best guy friend, travels from Seattle to Tokyo and becomes embroiled in an art heist involving the yakuza. It’s fast paced and clever. Read it on the plane home to New York if that’s what it takes—but totes read it.

Jessa Johanssen (Jemima Kirke): Cut, by Patricia McCormick
It’s true, Jessa: you’re good at fixing other people’s problems (well, sometimes), and your decision to become a therapist is a surprisingly mature one. Before classes start in earnest, we suggest reading McCormick’s debut, Cut, a realistic, heartbreaking account of Callie, a teen girl receiving treatment for self-harm. Callie has stopped speaking altogether, in response to her dysfunctional family and her younger brother’s recent health problems. Reading her story will exercise your empathy muscles and help prepare you for the work ahead.

Loreen Horvath (Becky Ann Baker): Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List, by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Look, Loreen. It’s not easy to decide whether you should divorce your husband Tad for coming out as gay. We know that. But take some comfort in the tale of Naomi and Ely, a college-set story that depicts the relationship between a straight girl and her gay BFF, whom she loves but cannot have. (At least, not in the way she thinks she wants.) And then lend the book to Hannah because we think she still has a few issues to deal with in regards to her own college-era boyfriend, Elijah.

Marnie Michaels (Allison Williams): The True Meaning of Cleavage, by Mariah Fredericks
We hate to say it, Marn, but you have a serial habit of hooking up with your friends’ former and current loves (*cough*, Elijah, Ray) and then dating/marrying someone who didn’t start out as yours (*cough*, Desi). So let’s flip the script by giving you a book about the opposite point of view. We bet you’ll relate to the frustration felt by Cleavage’s high school frosh heroine, Jess, who must endure watching her bestie Sari become the “girl on the side” of popular, charismatic senior, David. Jess ultimately realizes friends who screw up are still worth keeping, which is sometimes the lesson that gets us all through adulthood.

Every Last Girl: Tyrell, by Coe Booth
Lastly, for a dose of perspective, pick up Tyrell—Coe Booth’s stellar, award-winning debut—and its powerful sequel, Bronxwood. Tyrell’s dad is in jail for dealing drugs, and Tyrell and his little brother Troy are currently living in a roach-filled homeless shelter with their less-than-attentive mom.  But resourceful, talented Tyrell has a plan to change all that, and he’s got the drive and DJ skills to forge a new path for himself.  These books may provide a glimpse into a different side of New York than you’re used to. We’re not saying your problems aren’t significant. We’re just saying they’re also relative.