The Bookshop
Poetry, essays, and other works by Shannen Maher.
Survival as an Ongoing Attempt is a collection of 37 poems about mental illness, medication, love, shame, memory, and the ordinary work of remaining alive.
Moving between clinical language and intimate confession, Shannen Maher examines the distance between appearing functional and actually being well. These poems resist turning survival into something beautiful simply because it happened. Instead, they attend to what survival often looks like in practice: taking the prescription, cooking the rice, leaving what diminishes you, calling someone, and waiting for morning.
Darkly funny, psychologically candid, and deeply human, this collection is for anyone who has had to build a life while still learning how to stay inside it.
Digital edition · EPUB format
Compatible with Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play Books, and most ebook-reading apps. Kindle readers can add the EPUB using Amazon’s Send to Kindle feature.
Digital edition · PDF download
This is a fixed-layout digital book designed to preserve the typography and visual presentation of the original edition. It can be read on phones, tablets, computers, and most PDF-reading applications.
Explore the Collection
Survival as an Ongoing Attempt is a collection of 37 poems about mental illness, medication, love, shame, memory, and the ordinary work of remaining alive.
Moving between clinical language and intimate confession, Shannen Maher examines the distance between appearing functional and actually being well. These poems resist turning survival into something beautiful simply because it happened. Instead, they attend to what survival often looks like in practice: taking the prescription, cooking the rice, leaving what diminishes you, calling someone, and waiting for morning.
Darkly funny, psychologically candid, and deeply human, this collection is for anyone who has had to build a life while still learning how to stay inside it.
Digital edition · EPUB format
Compatible with Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play Books, and most ebook-reading apps. Kindle readers can add the EPUB using Amazon’s Send to Kindle feature.
A simple, approachable guide for anyone curious about meditation but unsure where to begin. Inside, you’ll find clear guidance on how to sit, what to expect, and how to build a practice without pressure, perfection, or overcomplicating it.
Available as EPUB