Rating: 
Summary: meany but funny
Review: Is happiness necessary THE thing that we are striving for, and are we going to be complacent once we get to "nirvana"? This satire or black comedy was a blast to read. I have eagerly awaiting for Will's book after I read his travel book regarding his hitch hiking experience in Japan. And who would have thought that his conversion from a travel writer to a novel writer would be that seamless akin to Shania Twain crossed his country root into pop. Anyhow, the issue about achieving a sense of complacency, zen were dealt with in movies such as Demolition Man (where there was this underground group fighting the real world when swearing, wearing slack clothings, etc. were strictly prohibited) & Holy Man (starred Eddie Murphy, of this mysterious guy who seemed to have be taken in by the public realm), and the bottomline is always the same, that underneath the coating of happiness, there was unhappiness lurking & thus, the motivation to making it happen, & the writer's intention to convey the message that only by living in the real world that we start to appreciate the beauty of living a life that is full. In a way, this novel is fresh by trademarking happiness, but the analysis of the state of mind in this form has been done before but none has done it as satisfactorily as Will's effort, & what a splendid effort that he's done for his first outing on fictitious stuff, which I certain there would be many to come to turn the readers' world upside down with roars of laughter & yet, keeping us intellectually challenged & stirring our imagination as we go. Highly recommended to the skeptics. You won't be disappointed. Live, love, & learn!!
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended.
Review: Loved the book. This is satire in the Kurt Vonnegut tradition
that answers the burning question "What if a self-help book
actually worked?" His lampooning of the publishing industry is a
lot of fun, and the plot and ending are particularly fine. The
story never drags.One minor flaw. Stylistically Will Ferguson sometimes tries too
hard, particularly in the opening passages. I prefer the power
and economy of plain, simple text. I suspect this will improve
as Ferguson gains experience as a fiction writer. Although we're not supposed to mention other reviews, I haven't
a clue what the reviewer from Darwin, Australia is talking
about.
Rating: 
Summary: 2 stars for great premise and wit; 0 stars for ending!!!!
Review: Ok, the book was funny at some parts, annoying at others. While the premise was cleverly set up, seemingly to gather steam and roll towards a rollickin' good end, the ending was way too much of a let down with huge chunks of dialogue as exposition that went on and on and on. It was disappointing. Here, the author was setting up some end-of-the-world scenario with a scary book and its mysteriously evil author as its villain, only to reveal.... Groan! Again I say, without giving away the ending, that the ending was miserable. Truly, the ending was so pathetic as to not make the read of the first 4/5s of the book worth it. While Mr.Ferguson does write with a sure hand, he sure runs out of creativity in the crucial final act. Unfortunatey so.
I feel cheated!
Rating: 
Summary: Most enjoyable read of 2001, best satire I've ever read
Review: Originally published in Canada under the title "Generica," a term coined (as far as I know) by Douglas Coupland, denoting the nation-state of flourescent signage, chain restaurants, malls and factory outlet stores that surrounds most US cities. Having been introduced to Will by my sister, who pestered me for years to read "Why I Hate Canadians," I became a rapid fan of Will's non-fiction and bought this as soon as I saw it on the shelf. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which although it might leave a little to be desired as a novel, succeeds wildly as a satire.
Rating: 
Summary: a sad waste of talent
Review: The basic premise of Happiness is funny and original. It is tragedy that this book is so bad - it has everything in it that I could have wanted in a novel - foolish self improvement fanatics, health and diet fads, the delusional and annoying baby boomers... Ferguson even invokes the Great Randi (every sceptics hero). How did he get it all so wrong? Well, I lay the blame squarely at the feet of his editor. It is a crying shame that the editor did not take more care with this book because there are times when you can see this writer *can* write. Unfortunately, this book is grossly repetitive. And you will become very frustrated with the errors (and typos!) in it. I only finished it to see if I could spot more typos and to see how many more times I would be told that happiness is not a state we want to achieve. A sad sad waste of talent. This book's editor should hang their head in shame.
Rating:
Summary: Humorous, Satirical, Thoughtful, Happiness (tm)
Review: The simple premise of this deeper-the-expected book is summed up in the prolog, "If anyone wrote a self-help book that actually worked, we'd all be in trouble." The way this plays out is the main draw of the book. I could not anticipate what would happen next, and at the end, was not all that sure if I had got what I expected. The writing style of the book is a mish mash - it flips back and forth between tenses and at times has the narrator talking to the reader. I learned quickly not to trust the author - his description of a publishing company's slush pile is undermined by the fact that Will Ferguson's first three books were plucked from the slush pile. I also learned not to expect much from the flawed main characters, wishy-washy Edwin and predictable May, but read on to see how the story would progress and ultimately end. I was most struck by the burst of insight that did sneak in. For instance, "...ethics isn't about choosing between right and wrong;" a character in part three says, "it's about choosing between gray and gray." Happiness (tm) was a good weekend book. The humor, at times reminiscent of a Simpsons eppisode or Matt Groening's "Life in Hell" series, does jab at the right targets. It doesn't hit them all the time, but is good entertainment none the less.
Rating:
Summary: 2 stars for great premise and wit; 0 stars for ending!!!!
Review: This was a wonderful novel that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. It's witty, smart, and thought provoking as it explores the true meaning of happiness and humanity's obsession to attain it. The main character, Edwin De Valu, is very much the anti-hero, average editor of publishing company Panderic Inc. The narrative is sharp and keeps you going to the very last page- a definite must read.
Rating:
Summary: New Age Shnew Age
Review: We all yearn to be happy. We want to glow with self-confidence and calm, taking all the niggles of life in our stride.
Imagine you are floating away from your worries, going to a place where you feel relaxed. Can you describe that place?
...often this magical state of happiness looks like the end of the rainbow - we can see it, but we can't get to it.
And maybe we just should leave it that way?
Or should we "pop a magic pill" and be happy ever after?
The question is: do You want to BE happy?
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