Pioneering Emotional Well-being through Books

European Case Studies

Abstract

This paper examines the effectiveness of a practice-based model of two pan-European bibliotherapy initiatives, “Libraries of Emotions” (Creative Europe) and “Bookpower” (Erasmus+), which integrated bibliotherapeutic practices into public libraries across seven countries. Against the backdrop of a mental health crisis and the “affective turn” in library science, these projects utilized the novel “Key Emotion Indicator”(KEI)© to classify literature by emotional resonance rather than subject matter. Drawing on Rosenblatt’s transactional theory of reading, Bandura’s social cognitive theory, and Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, the study analyzes data from over 160 participants. Self-reported findings show high levels of satisfaction and positive emotional responses (96%), suggesting that when public libraries operate as “therapeutic landscapes” using affective metadata and mediated group interaction, they may contribute to emotional literacy, social cohesion, and individual resilience.