HarperNonFiction scoops 'essential guide' on mental health by West

HarperNonFiction has scooped an “essential guide” on how to deal with grief and mental health related issues by campaigner Ben West.  

Kelly Ellis, publishing director, acquired world rights for This Book Could Save Your Life from Guy Warren Thomas at M&C Saatchi Social. Ajda Vucicevic, who is providing publishing director maternity cover, will be overseeing publication. It will be published on 28th April in the UK to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week, followed by HarperCollins Australia in August. 

The publisher said: “It is written for those experiencing mental health difficulties, but also as a source of comfort and guidance for family and friends on how to best offer support.” 

At the age of 17, West lost his younger brother to suicide and has since tirelessly campaigned for mental health awareness and suicide prevention. His work advocates for change in how we approach these difficult and urgent issues, particularly within schools and the education system. 

Vucicevic said: “We at HarperCollins are deeply proud to be publishing such an important and necessary book at a time where there is such urgent need for action around mental health. Ben is a truly remarkable campaigner. He has a unique ability to communicate with compassion, warmth and understanding alongside an unbreakable drive to make a real and tangible difference for anyone who has ever had to manage their mental health. It is these remarkable qualities that are present in every word of This Book Could Save Your Life and this is why we’re proud to be publishing this essential guide to mental health in time for Mental Health Awareness Week this year.” 

West added: “When my brother Sam died, I was able to spend one last moment with him trying to save him. On that day, in the desperation that unfolded in that room, I promised him that I wasn’t going to stop and that I’d keep trying. There’s nothing I can do to bring Sam back now, but that promise has remained on my conscience every moment since, fuelling all of the work I’ve done in mental health campaigning over the years. 

“I truly believe that this book can and will save lives. It’s the piece of the jigsaw I’ve seen missing in the mental health conversation – a brutally honest look at what’s going on and why, and at the heartache that inaction causes. Today is a special day for me: it’s the day I get to introduce a very important and personal book to the world. But, on a deeper level, today is the day I can finally say I’ve done my best at fulfilling that promise I made all those years ago.”