Are you happy? Could you be happier?
Each month for a year author Gretchen Rubin picked a theme like "energy" or "money" or "parenthood" and came up with specific resolutions to try and increase her happiness in that area. She takes all that advice we always hear—that money can't buy happiness or that people who have fun are happier and tests them out. The result is a concrete and surprisingly helpful look at what makes us happy.
What I Liked Best
A combination memoir and self-help book, The Happiness Project is in the new category of "stunt books" where people do something for a year and then write about it. (Think Julie and Julia or Eat Pray Love.) I've read a lot of books in this category and I enjoy them, but there's one major difference between those books and this one: I read the others only once. This book I kept opening up to random sections and re-reading bits, wondering how a resolution like "enjoy the fun of failure" or "go off the path" might change my own life. I enjoyed reading how the author chose to interpret her resolutions, such as in the "money" chapter, when she decided to "indulge in a modest splurge" to increase her happiness and bought a Deluxe Uniball Micro pen. That made me smile because it's exactly the kind of thing I—and a few of my writer friends—would splurge on.
Another friend had a different suggestion. "Your should explore your conflicts with your mother," he urged. "Everyone's interested in that."
"Good point . . . but I don't really have much conflict with my mother," I said, regretting my close relationship with my mother for the first time ever.
"Huh," he answered. Clearly he thought I was in massive denial.
I should warn you that the "getting started" chapter which outlines her project is a bit tough going. I started reading it
and went "uh-oh" because the author, a former lawyer, filled the chapter with painstaking explanations and quotes from experts
(such as Aristotle and Ben Franklin). It lacked the same engaging tone as the rest of the book. I also got less out of the December chapter, where she tries to put all her resolutions into practice at once.
You'll Like This Book If:
- You enjoy "stunt" books, where the author does X for a year and then writes a book about it.
- You keep making resolutions, but can't seem to stick to them.
- You want to read more than one person's point of view on a topic. (While the book is mainly focused on her own journey, the author does include some quotes from her Happiness Project blog readers, including some crafters.)
- You feel vaguely dissatisfied with your life, but are not sure how to change it. (And you can't afford to take off a year and live in Italy, India, or Bali while you think about it.)
A fascinating—and potentially life-changing—read.