Overview
Why would there be a contract out on Edwin de Valu's life? Edwin — the wiry low-level editor at Panderic Press. Why has rage disappeared from the roads and McDonald's gone alfalfa? How come everyone seems so damn happy? And most importantly, who, or what, is Tupak Soiree?
When an enormous self-help manuscript lands on Edwin's desk, it's headed for the trash. Edwin's cynicism of self-help books, coupled with his filthy mood that morning, results in him dismissing Tupak Soiree's What I Learned on the Mountain and using it as a doorstop. However, Tupak's manuscript is unique — a self-help book that actually works. Before Edwin knows it, a chain of events begins that affects not only his own life but the world at large.
For those who choke on Chicken Soup for the Soul or have choice words for Dr. Phil, Will Ferguson offers up a killer dose of Happiness™ — a masterpiece of comic fiction.
Synopsis
Why would there be a contract out on Edwin de Valu's life? Edwin — the wiry low-level editor at Panderic Press. Why has rage disappeared from the roads and McDonald's gone alfalfa? How come everyone seems so damn happy? And most importantly, who, or what, is Tupak Soiree?
When an enormous self-help manuscript lands on Edwin's desk, it's headed for the trash. Edwin's cynicism of self-help books, coupled with his filthy mood that morning, results in him dismissing Tupak Soiree's What I Learned on the Mountain and using it as a doorstop. However, Tupak's manuscript is unique — a self-help book that actually works. Before Edwin knows it, a chain of events begins that affects not only his own life but the world at large.
For those who choke on Chicken Soup for the Soul or have choice words for Dr. Phil, Will Ferguson offers up a killer dose of Happiness™ — a masterpiece of comic fiction.
The Washington Post
Although advertised as hilarious, Happiness has an ominous truth at its core. Novelist Will Ferguson has written the ultimate satire on self-help books, full of hijinks and capers -- think of Monty Python skits replete with both juvenility and Latin terms. Its conclusion, however, mutes the belly laughs: "we can't . . . close our eyes and hug ourselves into believing that old age, death and disillusion don't exist." — Carolyn S. Briggs
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble Review from Discover Great New WritersDon't look too closely for the meaning of life in this fast-paced, remorselessly sharp-witted novel. Just when you think you've got it figured out, along comes Happiness to tell you differently. Edwin de Valu is a cynical associate acquisitions editor in the self-help division of a trade publishing house. With his reputation at stake and a deadline looming, an eerie-looking 1,000-page manuscript adorned with daisy stickers and chockful of feel-good platitudes lands on his desk. Is it too good to be true? (Probably, but we'll get to that later.)
Edwin grudgingly publishes the bloated, self-important work, titled What I Learned on the Mountain, and to everyone's surprise (especially Edwin's), it hits the big time with a message that sets off a chain of earth-shattering events. But the strangest effect of the "book" on its readership is that it makes them, well, nice. Needless to say, an unhappy band of rogue capitalists arrives to exact revenge on Edwin for precipitating the downfall of Western civilization. And to save his own life, Edwin is forced to embark on a search-and-destroy mission -- his sole object the demise of the self-help guru he helped create.
Thank you, Will Ferguson, for reminding is that it's perfectly fine to be unhappy, because the alternative isn't all it's cracked up to be. (Summer 2002 Selection)