If you looked in the mirror this morning and saw Scrooge staring back, it’s time for an intervention. Don’t worry, you curmudgeon—this doesn’t call for ghosts or Dickensian trials. Everything you need to reverse your holiday sourness is free, downloadable, and read aloud by a soothing narrator.

Whether you're braving the airport security line with a suitcase full of gifts, white-knuckling the steering wheel on an icy highway, or hiding from nosy Aunt Kathy in a guest bedroom, audiobooks can be your saving grace. Decompress with comfort reads, escape into fantastical worlds far from Uncle Gary’s conspiracy theories, and expand your knowledge arsenal for dreaded dinner-table debates. Put your headphones on and you’ll find that your relatives’ intrusive questions fade into the background.

Consider the Libby app our holiday gift to you—no wrapping paper required. Now treat yourself and press play!

Emotional prep

If the villain in your stress dreams is an amalgam of holly jolly relatives, these are the audiobooks for you.

Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson, PsyD

In this breakthrough book, clinical psychologist Lindsay Gibson exposes the destructive nature of parents who are emotionally immature or unavailable.

Self-Care for Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson, PsyD

In this compassionate guide you’ll find tips and tools to help you set boundaries with others, honor and validate your emotions, and thrive in the face of life’s challenges.

The Highly Sensitive Person’s Guide to Dealing with Toxic People by Shahida Arabi, MA

If you’re an HSP who is ready to take a stand against the toxic people in your life, this book has everything you need to survive and thrive.

Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May

An intimate, revelatory exploration of the ways we can care for and repair ourselves when life knocks us down.

Fictional family drama

Immersing yourself in fictional drama can ease the exhaustion of your reality. Give these excellent novels a chance to redirect your spiraling worries.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors

A story of what it takes to keep living after loss—and, ultimately, to fall in love with life again.

Sandwich by Catherine Newman

A moving, hilarious story of a family summer vacation full of secrets, lunch, and learning to let go.

Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo

A brilliantly observed family drama in which the enduring, hard-won affection of a long marriage faces imminent derailment from events both past and present.

Laugh it off

If laughter is the best medicine, then prescribe yourself a hot cocoa and some audiobook silliness.

Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

A bold, laugh-out-loud funny, and heartwarming story about one young woman’s attempt to navigate adulthood, new motherhood, and her meager bank account in our increasingly online world.

How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley

A senior citizens’ center and a daycare collide with hilarious results in this ensemble comedy.

Hogfather by Terry Pratchett

A hilarious and irreverent installment in the beloved Discworld series.

For the comfort seekers

Not everything is solved or even improved by trying hard. Sometimes it’s gentle simplicity and familiar fantasies that warm a jittery soul. Find strength in the titles below.

The Comfort Book by Matt Haig

An uplifting book for anyone in search of hope, looking for a path to a more meaningful life, or in need of a little encouragement.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Scrooge is reminded of what it means to have love in his heart, and what the true spirit of Christmas is all about in this classic.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling

Having become classics of our time, the Harry Potter stories never fail to bring comfort and escapism with their message of hope, belonging, and the enduring power of truth and love.

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery

A joyful and utterly irresistible story of a mother who couldn’t love her kids more but hopes that, just this once, they please don’t come home for Christmas.

*Title availability may vary by library & region.

Spend your holidays with an audiobook! Load your Libby app with these picks or browse more in your library’s digital collection.

RELATED READ: 14 happy books to beat the winter blues