Happiness™️

Chi non ha mai letto un libro di auto-aiuto scagli la prima pietra: vuoi per la dieta, vuoi per il fumo, vuoi per lo stress, vuoi per la vita in generale, credo che tutti prima o poi ci inciampino.
Il fatto che le case editrici ne sfornino continuamente di nuovi è segno che nessuno funziona al 100%. Ferguson immagina invece che ad un editore un po' sfigato capiti in mano *il* libro, quello che contiene la soluzione a tutti i problemi, calvizie compresa.
Si ride tanto e di gusto, con i calci al gatto, una moglie chiamata "A 'stro", un capo ex-hippie: ma c'è anche da riflettere. Si ritrova quella che era la filosofia del primo Matrix, gli uomini non possono vivere senza l'infelicità: perché in fondo sono le ombre che ci fanno percepire show more la profondità, se ci fosse solo la luce vedremmo tutto piatto e uniforme.
Ferguson ha un umorismo cinico veramente tagliente e le sue metafore sono in perfetto equilibrio tra poesia e pazzia allo stato puro.

"Il silenzio era caldo e protettivo, come un abbraccio di flanella. Come una bara foderata di seta" -pag 190 show less

"If anyone wrote a self-help book that actually worked, we'd all be in trouble". This comment by a book publicist allegedly prompted Will Ferguson to write Happiness™, a satire of the self-help industry and of publishing in general. Happiness™ is the story of such a book, one that works so well that it instantly makes all its readers happy... and thus brings the whole Western economy to screeching halt, said economy being notoriously entirely dependent on a constant supply of unsatiated desires. The result is a thoroughly enjoyable read, full of dark humor and inconvenient truths about the publishing industry, and a testament to what makes life enjoyable: guilty pleasures, unhealthy food and unrequited yearning.

Imagine what will happens if the ultimate self-help book was really working ... Apparently, it would be hell on earth for the remaining 0,3 % of the population, immune to the Message. Satirical view on what makes us tick and profoundly unique. Funny with some slow passages.

Happiness TM is like taking Coupland's social commentary & apocalyptic ideas, mixing it with Adams' brand of "oh look at me taking the piss out of my self importance", factor in Vonnegut's optimistic negativity & mix with a double shot of Thank You For Smoking, only replace a tobacco insider with an editor... I can go on forever like this but all this requires a frame of reference.

The idea is brilliant, I cannot think of a better apocalypse for a satire than mass-happiness. Cynical yet uplifting, corny yet unexpected, having the sort of narrative causality that will slaughter common sense & with a good dose of bite-sized pop wisdom that begs to be quoted. Consider:

"The two most important phrases in the human language are "If only" and show more "Maybe someday". Our past mistakes and our unrequited longings. The things we regret and the things we yearn for. That's what makes us who we are."

There is much to be enjoyed in this book if you don't let that sometimes ingratiating tone get to you.

Oh. Also not recommended if you are any of these categories : hippies, capitalists, Buddhists, people who are in love with the concept of Heaven. Sorry. show less

Funny and fantastic, the author imagines a world without any need for self-improvement because one book has worked for everyone. Instead of peace and prosperity, the world turns into a realm of blissful robots living in communes. Makes thought-provoking arguments about bliss vs. happiness, how life is inherently short on joy, and why our constant yearnings are actually good for the world.

3.5 stars

What would happen if everyone in the world was happy? In this book, Edwin is an editor for a mid-sized publisher. Although he initially rejects and throws out the giant manuscript for a self-help book, “What I Learned on the Mountain” by Tupak Soiree, when put on the spot, he suggests they publish it. The book is an instant bestseller, and in time, almost everyone is happy. But, Edwin feels things just aren't right...

I liked it. It was amusing, with a few laugh-out-loud moments. There was actually an alternate ending added in (at least to my edition). I liked the end of the book, but I believe the alternate ending would have been the one if some of the other stuff hadn't been cut from the book. That alternate ending had show more some of the best laugh-out-loud moments, I thought, but that's probably because they were all Quebec/Canada jokes. show less

I loved this book! Very, very funny. It's all about an editor who discovers a self-help book in the slush pile and ends up publishing it. Only, it's not just any self-help book, it's the self-help book, and it makes 99.7% of the world perfectly happy. And what a horrible place the world turns out to be when everyone's happy. This is black humor at its very best.