Happy At Any Cost

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Happy at Any Cost

Author : Kirsten Grind
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1982186992
Total Pages : 320 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (821 download)

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Book Synopsis Happy at Any Cost by : Kirsten Grind

Download or read book Happy at Any Cost written by Kirsten Grind and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2023-03-14 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From award-winning Wall Street Journal reporters, “a startling portrait of one of our greatest tech visionaries, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh” (Robert Kolker, author of Hidden Valley Road), reporting on his short life, untimely death, and what that means for our pursuit of happiness. Tony Hsieh—CEO of Zappos, Las Vegas developer, and beloved entrepreneur—was famous for spreading happiness. He lived and breathed this philosophy, instilling an ethos of joy at his company, outlining his vision for a better workplace in his New York Times bestseller Delivering Happiness. He promoted a workplace where bosses treated employees like family members, where stress was replaced by playfulness, and where hierarchies were replaced with equality and collaboration. His outlook shaped how we work today. Hsieh also aspired to build his own utopian cities, pouring millions of dollars into real estate and small businesses, first in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada—where Zappos is headquartered—and then in Park City, Utah. He gave generously to his employees and close friends, including throwing notorious Zappos parities and organizing gatherings at his home, an Airstream trailer park. When Hsieh died suddenly in late 2022, the news shook the business and tech world. Wall Street Journal reporters Kirsten Grind and Katherine Sayre discovered Hsieh’s obsession with happiness masked his darker struggles with addiction, mental health, and loneliness. In the last year of his life, he spiraled out of control, cycling out of rehab and into the waiting arms of friends who enabled his worst behavior, even as he bankrolled them from his billion-dollar fortune. Happy at Any Cost sheds light on one of our most creative, yet vulnerable, business leaders. It’s about our intense need to find “happiness” at all costs, our misguided worship of entrepreneurs, the stigmas still surrounding mental health, and how the trappings of fame can mask all types of deeper problems. In turn, it reveals how we conceptualize success—and define happiness—in our modern age.

Happy at Any Cost

Author : Kirsten Grind
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1982186984
Total Pages : 320 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (821 download)

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Book Synopsis Happy at Any Cost by : Kirsten Grind

Download or read book Happy at Any Cost written by Kirsten Grind and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2022-03-15 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From award-winning Wall Street Journal reporters, "a startling portrait of one of our greatest tech visionaries, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh" (Robert Kolker, author of Hidden Valley Road), reporting on his short life and untimely death and what they mean for our culture's pursuit of happiness. Tony Hsieh--CEO of Zappos, Las Vegas developer, and all-around beloved entrepreneur--was famous for spreading happiness. He lived and breathed this philosophy, instilling an ethos of joy at his company and outlining his vision for a better workplace in his New York Times bestseller Delivering Happiness. He promoted a workplace where bosses treated employees like family members, where stress was replaced by playfulness, and where hierarchies were replaced with equality and collaboration. His outlook shaped Silicon Valley and the larger business world. Hsieh used his position at work to integrate levity into a normally competitive environment. He aspired to build his own utopian cities, pouring millions of dollars into real estate and small businesses, first in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada--where Zappos was headquartered--and then in Park City, Utah. He gave generously to his employees and close friends, including throwing infamous Zappos parties and organizing gatherings at his home, an Airstream trailer park. When Hsieh died suddenly in November of 2020, the news shook the business and tech world. Wall Street Journal reporters Kirsten Grind and Katherine Sayre quickly realized the importance of the story because of Hsieh's stature in the industry, but as they dug into the details of his final months, they realized there was a bigger story to tell. They found that Hsieh's obsession with happiness masked his darker struggles with addiction, mental health, and loneliness. In the last year of his life, he spiraled out of control, cycling out of rehab and into the waiting arms of friends who enabled his worst behavior, even as he bankrolled them from his billion-dollar fortune. Happy at Any Cost sheds light on one of the most venerated, yet vulnerable, business leaders of our time. It's about our culture's intense need to find "happiness" at all costs, our misguided worship of entrepreneurs, the stigmas still surrounding mental health, and how the trappings of fame can mask all types of deeper problems. In turn, it reveals how we conceptualize success--and define happiness--in our modern age.

Summary of Kirsten Grind & Katherine Sayre's Happy at Any Cost

Author : Everest Media,
Publisher : Everest Media LLC
ISBN 13 : 1669368688
Total Pages : 30 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (693 download)

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Book Synopsis Summary of Kirsten Grind & Katherine Sayre's Happy at Any Cost by : Everest Media,

Download or read book Summary of Kirsten Grind & Katherine Sayre's Happy at Any Cost written by Everest Media, and published by Everest Media LLC. This book was released on 2022-03-27T22:59:00Z with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 Tony had just finished a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility in Utah named Cirque Lodge. It was a celebrity facility, and he would have been treated there anyway, but the prices were typically higher for clients who couldn’t afford it. #2 Tony began acting strangely at Zappos, his company, in 2020. He was talking a lot about outlandish ideas and plans all the time. His friends began to worry and thought he was taking ketamine, a drug used medically as an anesthetic that can cause hallucinations. #3 The party was one of the incidents that convinced Tony's friends he might need help. They began to discuss rehab, but careful framing was required to persuade him. Some of his friends came on too strong, and told him that he was an addict or had a problem. #4 Tony went to the Cirque Lodge program in Utah, which was a perfect match for him. It was a traditional program, but they also used experiential therapies to get clients distracted. On day thirteen, he left. Though there was a small front desk, there was no security. Clients could leave at any time.

Happiness

Author : Richard Layard
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 1101117710
Total Pages : 295 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (11 download)

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Book Synopsis Happiness by : Richard Layard

Download or read book Happiness written by Richard Layard and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2006-06-27 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a paradox at the heart of our lives. We all want more money, but as societies become richer, they do not become happier. This is not speculation: It's the story told by countless pieces of scientific research. We now have sophisticated ways of measuring how happy people are, and all the evidence shows that on average people have grown no happier in the last fifty years, even as average incomes have more than doubled. The central question the great economist Richard Layard asks in Happiness is this: If we really wanted to be happier, what would we do differently? First we'd have to see clearly what conditions generate happiness and then bend all our efforts toward producing them. That is what this book is about-the causes of happiness and the means we have to effect it. Until recently there was too little evidence to give a good answer to this essential question, but, Layard shows us, thanks to the integrated insights of psychology, sociology, applied economics, and other fields, we can now reach some firm conclusions, conclusions that will surprise you. Happiness is an illuminating road map, grounded in hard research, to a better, happier life for us all.

The Happiness Project

Author : Gretchen Rubin
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 1443418196
Total Pages : 354 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (434 download)

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Book Synopsis The Happiness Project by : Gretchen Rubin

Download or read book The Happiness Project written by Gretchen Rubin and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2012-06-26 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What if you could change your life--without changing your life? Gretchen had a good marriage, two healthy daughters, and work she loved--but one day, stuck on a city bus, she realized that time was flashing by, and she wasn’t thinking enough about the things that really mattered. “I should have a happiness project,” she decided. She spent the next year test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific studies, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier. Each month, she pursued a different set of resolutions: go to sleep earlier, quit nagging, forget about results, or take time to be silly. Bit by bit, she began to appreciate and amplify the happiness that already existed in her life. Written with humour and insight, Gretchen’s story will inspire you to start your own happiness project. Now in a beautiful, expanded edition, Gretchen offers a wealth of new material including happiness paradoxes and practical tips on many daily matters: being a more light-hearted parent, sticking to a fitness routine, getting your sweetheart to do chores without nagging, coping when you forget someone’s name and more.

Happier

Author : Tal Ben-Shahar
Publisher : McGraw Hill Professional
ISBN 13 : 9780071510967
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (19 download)

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Book Synopsis Happier by : Tal Ben-Shahar

Download or read book Happier written by Tal Ben-Shahar and published by McGraw Hill Professional. This book was released on 2007-05-25 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Can You Learn to Be Happy? YES . . . according to the teacher of Harvard University’s most popular and life-changing course. One out of every five Harvard students has lined up to hear Tal Ben-Shahar’s insightful and inspiring lectures on that ever-elusive state: HAPPINESS. HOW? Grounded in the revolutionary “positive psychology” movement, Ben-Shahar ingeniously combines scientific studies, scholarly research, self-help advice, and spiritual enlightenment. He weaves them together into a set of principles that you can apply to your daily life. Once you open your heart and mind to Happier ’s thoughts, you will feel more fulfilled, more connected . . . and, yes, HAPPIER. “Dr. Ben-Shahar, one of the most popular teachers in Harvard’s recent history, has written a personal, informed, and highly enjoyable primer on how to become happier. It would be wise to take his advice.” --Ellen J. Langer, author of Mindfulness and On Becoming an Artist “This fine book shimmers with a rare brand of good sense that is imbedded in scientific knowledge about how to increase happiness. It is easy to see how this is the backbone of the most popular course at Harvard today." --Martin E. P. Seligman, author of Authentic Happiness

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage

Author : Ann Patchett
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 1408842408
Total Pages : 320 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (88 download)

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Book Synopsis This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage by : Ann Patchett

Download or read book This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage written by Ann Patchett and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2013-11-07 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage is an irresistible blend of literature and memoir revealing the big experiences and little moments that shaped Ann Patchett as a daughter, wife, friend and writer. Here, Ann Patchett shares entertaining and moving stories about her tumultuous childhood, her painful early divorce, the excitement of selling her first book, driving a Winnebago from Montana to Yellowstone Park, her joyous discovery of opera, scaling a six-foot wall in order to join the Los Angeles Police Department, the gradual loss of her beloved grandmother, starting her own bookshop in Nashville, her love for her very special dog and, of course, her eventual happy marriage. This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage is a memoir both wide ranging and deeply personal, overflowing with close observation and emotional wisdom, told with wit, honesty and irresistible warmth.

The Happiness Effect

Author : Donna Freitas
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190239859
Total Pages : 369 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (92 download)

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Book Synopsis The Happiness Effect by : Donna Freitas

Download or read book The Happiness Effect written by Donna Freitas and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sexting. Cyberbullying. Narcissism. People-and especially the media-are consumed by fears about the effect of social media on young people. We hear constantly about the dangers that lurk online, and about young people's seemingly pathological desire to share anything and everything about themselves with the entire world. Donna Freitas has traveled the country, talking to college students about what's really happening on social media. What she finds is that, while we focus on the problems that make headlines, we are ignoring the seemingly mundane, but much more widespread, problems that occur every day. Young people, she shows, feel enormous pressure to look happy all the time-and not just basically content, but blissful, ecstatic, inspiring and successful in their personal, professional, and academic lives-regardless of how they actually feel. Of course, these young adults are not that happy, at least not all of the time, and the constant exposure to the seemingly perfect lives of other people on social media only makes them feel worse. What's more, far from wanting to share everything about themselves, they are terrified of sharing something that will come back to haunt them later in life. The rise of social media has brought about a dramatic cultural shift: the need to curate a perfect identity online that often has little to do with reality. The consequences, Freitas shows, can be very real. Drawing on an online survey and in-person interviews with students from thirteen campuses around the U.S, Freitas offers a window into the social media generation and how they use Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter, and other online platforms. She presents fascinating insights about how these people are consciously creating alternate identities for themselves, while also suffering from the belief that the other people they encounter online really are as perfect as their profiles appear. This is an eye-opening look at the real world of social media today

The Little Book of Contentment

Author : Leo Babauta
Publisher : Lumen Deo
ISBN 13 : 6021460413
Total Pages : 136 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (214 download)

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Book Synopsis The Little Book of Contentment by : Leo Babauta

Download or read book The Little Book of Contentment written by Leo Babauta and published by Lumen Deo. This book was released on 2014-07-31 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contentment is a super power. If you can learn the skills of contentment, your life will be better in so many ways: You’ll enjoy your life more. Your relationship will be stronger. You’ll be better at meeting people. You’ll be healthier, and good at forming healthy habits. You’ll like and trust yourself more. You’ll be jealous less. You’ll be less angry and more at peace. You’ll be happier with your body. You’ll be happier no matter what you’re doing or who you’re with. Those are a lot of benefits, from one small bundle of skills. Putting some time in learning the skills of contentment is worth the effect and will pay off for the rest of your life.

The Book of Happy

Author : Adams Media
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1507210086
Total Pages : 256 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (72 download)

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Book Synopsis The Book of Happy by : Adams Media

Download or read book The Book of Happy written by Adams Media and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2018-12-25 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 200+ fun activities, joyful quotes, relaxation techniques, and more to feel happy right now! Find your happiness today! There is perhaps no goal more sought after than happiness: everyone wants to live their life in comfort and peace, and pursue the things that bring them joy. But that’s usually easier said than done! Even the most cheerful person can use a little pick-me-up sometimes. While finding contentment in today’s chaotic world can be a struggle, The Book of Happy gives you what you need to find bliss, no matter the situation. The book includes over 200 entries to help you to be happy right now, from daily rituals, inspirational quotes, relaxation techniques, happiness hacks and more. With fun suggestions as varied as creating a vision board, to prioritizing yourself, to eating chocolate, you’ll find something to make you smile in The Book of Happy, no matter what has you down!

The H-Spot

Author : Jill Filipovic
Publisher : Bold Type Books
ISBN 13 : 1568585489
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (685 download)

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Book Synopsis The H-Spot by : Jill Filipovic

Download or read book The H-Spot written by Jill Filipovic and published by Bold Type Books. This book was released on 2017-05-02 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What do women want? The same thing men were promised in the Declaration of Independence: happiness, or at least the freedom to pursue it. For women, though, pursuing happiness is a complicated endeavor, and if you head out into America and talk to women one-on-one, as Jill Filipovic has done, you'll see that happiness is indelibly shaped by the constraints of gender, the expectations of feminine sacrifice, and the myriad ways that womanhood itself differs along lines of race, class, location, and identity. In The H-Spot, Filipovic argues that the main obstacle standing in-between women and happiness is a rigged system. In this world of unfinished feminism, men have long been able to "have it all" because of free female labor, while the bar of achievement for women has only gotten higher. Never before have women at every economic level had to work so much (whether it's to be an accomplished white-collar employee or just make ends meet). Never before have the standards of feminine perfection been so high. And never before have the requirements for being a "good mother" been so extreme. If our laws and policies made women's happiness and fulfillment a goal in and of itself, Filipovic contends, many of our country's most contentious political issues -- from reproductive rights to equal pay to welfare spending -- would swiftly be resolved. Filipovic argues that it is more important than ever to prioritize women's happiness-and that doing so will make men's lives better, too. Here, she provides an outline for a feminist movement we all need and a blueprint for how policy, laws, and society can deliver on the promise of the pursuit of happiness for all.

Furiously Happy

Author : Jenny Lawson
Publisher : Flatiron Books
ISBN 13 : 125007701X
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (5 download)

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Book Synopsis Furiously Happy by : Jenny Lawson

Download or read book Furiously Happy written by Jenny Lawson and published by Flatiron Books. This book was released on 2015-09-22 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Furiously Happy, #1 New York Times bestselling author Jenny Lawson explores her lifelong battle with mental illness. A hysterical, ridiculous book about crippling depression and anxiety? That sounds like a terrible idea. But terrible ideas are what Jenny does best. As Jenny says: "Some people might think that being 'furiously happy' is just an excuse to be stupid and irresponsible and invite a herd of kangaroos over to your house without telling your husband first because you suspect he would say no since he's never particularly liked kangaroos. And that would be ridiculous because no one would invite a herd of kangaroos into their house. Two is the limit. I speak from personal experience. My husband says that none is the new limit. I say he should have been clearer about that before I rented all those kangaroos. "Most of my favorite people are dangerously fucked-up but you'd never guess because we've learned to bare it so honestly that it becomes the new normal. Like John Hughes wrote in The Breakfast Club, 'We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it.' Except go back and cross out the word 'hiding.'" Furiously Happy is about "taking those moments when things are fine and making them amazing, because those moments are what make us who we are, and they're the same moments we take into battle with us when our brains declare war on our very existence. It's the difference between "surviving life" and "living life". It's the difference between "taking a shower" and "teaching your monkey butler how to shampoo your hair." It's the difference between being "sane" and being "furiously happy." Lawson is beloved around the world for her inimitable humor and honesty, and in Furiously Happy, she is at her snort-inducing funniest. This is a book about embracing everything that makes us who we are - the beautiful and the flawed - and then using it to find joy in fantastic and outrageous ways. Because as Jenny's mom says, "Maybe 'crazy' isn't so bad after all." Sometimes crazy is just right.

Passion & Purpose

Author : John Coleman
Publisher : Harvard Business Press
ISBN 13 : 1422162664
Total Pages : 312 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (221 download)

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Book Synopsis Passion & Purpose by : John Coleman

Download or read book Passion & Purpose written by John Coleman and published by Harvard Business Press. This book was released on 2012 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides an overview of the big issues in the business world today, with firsthand accounts from young leaders tasked with tackling these issues head on.

10% Happier

Author : Dan Harris
Publisher : Harper Collins
ISBN 13 : 006226544X
Total Pages : 299 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (622 download)

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Book Synopsis 10% Happier by : Dan Harris

Download or read book 10% Happier written by Dan Harris and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2014-03-11 with total page 299 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: #1 New York Times Bestseller REVISED WITH NEW MATIERAL Winner of the 2014 Living Now Book Award for Inspirational Memoir "An enormously smart, clear-eyed, brave-hearted, and quite personal look at the benefits of meditation." —Elizabeth Gilbert Nightline anchor Dan Harrisembarks on an unexpected, hilarious, and deeply skeptical odyssey through the strange worlds of spirituality and self-help, and discovers a way to get happier that is truly achievable. After having a nationally televised panic attack, Dan Harris knew he had to make some changes. A lifelong nonbeliever, he found himself on a bizarre adventure involving a disgraced pastor, a mysterious self-help guru, and a gaggle of brain scientists. Eventually, Harris realized that the source of his problems was the very thing he always thought was his greatest asset: the incessant, insatiable voice in his head, which had propelled him through the ranks of a hypercompetitive business, but had also led him to make the profoundly stupid decisions that provoked his on-air freak-out. Finally, Harris stumbled upon an effective way to rein in that voice, something he always assumed to be either impossible or useless: meditation, a tool that research suggests can do everything from lower your blood pressure to essentially rewire your brain. 10% Happier takes readers on a ride from the outer reaches of neuroscience to the inner sanctum of network news to the bizarre fringes of America’s spiritual scene, and leaves them with a takeaway that could actually change their lives.

Three Days of Happiness

Author : Sugaru Miaki
Publisher : Yen Press LLC
ISBN 13 : 1975314220
Total Pages : 165 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (753 download)

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Book Synopsis Three Days of Happiness by : Sugaru Miaki

Download or read book Three Days of Happiness written by Sugaru Miaki and published by Yen Press LLC. This book was released on 2020-10-20 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: HOW MUCH IS LIFE TRULY WORTH? Kusunoki used to believe he was destined for great things. Ostracized as a child, he held on to a belief that a good life was waiting for him in the years ahead. Now approaching the age of twenty, he's a completely mediocre college student with no motivation, no dreams, and no money. After learning he can sell his remaining years-and just how little they're worth-he chooses to divest himself of all but his last three months. Has Kusunoki truly destroyed his last chance to find happiness...or has he somehow found it?

Delivering Happiness

Author : Tony Hsieh
Publisher : Hachette UK
ISBN 13 : 044657631X
Total Pages : 166 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (465 download)

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Book Synopsis Delivering Happiness by : Tony Hsieh

Download or read book Delivering Happiness written by Tony Hsieh and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2010-06-07 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pay brand-new employees $2,000 to quit Make customer service the responsibility of the entire company-not just a department Focus on company culture as the #1 priority Apply research from the science of happiness to running a business Help employees grow-both personally and professionally Seek to change the world Oh, and make money too . . . Sound crazy? It's all standard operating procedure at Zappos, the online retailer that's doing over $1 billion in gross merchandise sales annually. After debuting as the highest-ranking newcomer in Fortune magazine's annual "Best Companies to Work For" list in 2009, Zappos was acquired by Amazon in a deal valued at over $1.2 billion on the day of closing. In Delivering Happiness, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh shares the different lessons he has learned in business and life, from starting a worm farm to running a pizza business, through LinkExchange, Zappos, and more. Fast-paced and down-to-earth, Delivering Happiness shows how a very different kind of corporate culture is a powerful model for achieving success-and how by concentrating on the happiness of those around you, you can dramatically increase your own. #1 New York Timesand Wall Street Journal bestseller

This Is Happiness

Author : Niall Williams
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 : 1635574218
Total Pages : 375 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (355 download)

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Book Synopsis This Is Happiness by : Niall Williams

Download or read book This Is Happiness written by Niall Williams and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2019-12-03 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST and REAL SIMPLE A profound and enchanting new novel from Booker Prize-longlisted author Niall Williams about the loves of our lives and the joys of reminiscing. You don't see rain stop, but you sense it. You sense something has changed in the frequency you've been living and you hear the quietness you thought was silence get quieter still, and you raise your head so your eyes can make sense of what your ears have already told you, which at first is only: something has changed. The rain is stopping. Nobody in the small, forgotten village of Faha remembers when it started; rain on the western seaboard was a condition of living. Now--just as Father Coffey proclaims the coming of electricity--it is stopping. Seventeen-year-old Noel Crowe is standing outside his grandparents' house shortly after the rain has stopped when he encounters Christy for the first time. Though he can't explain it, Noel knows right then: something has changed. This is the story of all that was to follow: Christy's long-lost love and why he had come to Faha, Noel's own experiences falling in and out of love, and the endlessly postponed arrival of electricity--a development that, once complete, would leave behind a world that had not changed for centuries. Niall Williams' latest novel is an intricately observed portrait of a community, its idiosyncrasies and its traditions, its paradoxes and its inanities, its failures and its triumphs. Luminous and otherworldly, and yet anchored with deep-running roots into the earthy and the everyday, This Is Happiness is about stories as the very stuff of life: the ways they make the texture and matter of our world, and the ways they write and rewrite us.