The author is a former journalist who went to ten countries in pursuit of one objective i.e to answer the question of what makes a person happy. Could it be related to religion, culture, financial status, living environment or something else? It was this very interesting context that I decided to give this book a try.
I like how it’s written from his perspective as a traveller who experiences first hand and speaks to locals who more often than not, are quite sure they are happy but offer no common reason across the board. Based on research results, he tries to ascertain whether the world happiness ranking is indeed relevant. Along the way, through the many conversations, one could learn new knowledge of a country such as Moldova being a poor place yet having the best fresh fruits and vegetables. It’s also fascinating that Icelanders view failure as important and they are all DNA related if you go back far enough the family tree. The occasional witty remarks on people, government policy and certain quirks keep the reading enjoyment going. For example, “Bhutan’s generously named National Highway is the only road in the country and barely a road at that, wide enough for one car.”
Despite it being 345 pages, it took me a long time to finish. Partly because I enjoyed it really much, partly also the concept of happiness is that elusive as to how it relates to me. There’s no answer yet but this should keep me thinking for a long while. Another highly recommended book that will keep you entertained throughout.
Trivia: Inspired by the book, I did a search for Singapore on the internet and found it is ranked 68th although it can vary between 30-70 depending on which index used
Tip: Catena Malbec 2019, quiet performer that comes forward with meats
No comments:
Post a Comment