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bethpreston's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
myliteraryshelf's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful and ethereal exploration of human relationships. Set against an atmospheric background of the life of Londons foxes and American coyote and wolves. These solitary creatures frame the unusual relationship between Jean and Atilla. A slow but captivating read exploring loneliness, trauma and love.
booktoilandtrouble's review against another edition
3.0
Happiness by Aminatta Forna
Attila is in London to give a speech on trauma and check up on his niece and her son. Jean is in London to study the urban fox population. The two find friendship when Attila's great nephew goes missing after being taken into care when his mother is taken away by immigration.
Forna's novel is full of parallels, even in the third chapter. This demonstrates the height of the her talent and planning. She grips you, tricks you, and informs you of the most interesting things and places. Focusing on the parallel between immigration and people's attitudes to urban foxes - they are not welcome - she succesfully and subtly solidifies the idea that nationality is a construct, because humans and animals alike can settle and adapt to anywhere. In post Brexit Britain, this novel has become a must read. It demonstrates the cruelty some wouldn't apply to animals, as is in the case of foxes, which immigrants face and the insanity of removing somebody or something which has made a happy home without disruption. We never hear from anyone whose been born and bred in London, because its the kind of city which accumulates a diversity of people due to the opportunity it holds.
The reason it loses two stars for me is how much it drags after the second half. The idea could've been captured quicker and efficiently had it been perhaps 5 chapters shorter. I would've been wowed. Not a lot happens, it's a character study, but with both characters being passive it becomes tedious.
Attila is in London to give a speech on trauma and check up on his niece and her son. Jean is in London to study the urban fox population. The two find friendship when Attila's great nephew goes missing after being taken into care when his mother is taken away by immigration.
Forna's novel is full of parallels, even in the third chapter. This demonstrates the height of the her talent and planning. She grips you, tricks you, and informs you of the most interesting things and places. Focusing on the parallel between immigration and people's attitudes to urban foxes - they are not welcome - she succesfully and subtly solidifies the idea that nationality is a construct, because humans and animals alike can settle and adapt to anywhere. In post Brexit Britain, this novel has become a must read. It demonstrates the cruelty some wouldn't apply to animals, as is in the case of foxes, which immigrants face and the insanity of removing somebody or something which has made a happy home without disruption. We never hear from anyone whose been born and bred in London, because its the kind of city which accumulates a diversity of people due to the opportunity it holds.
The reason it loses two stars for me is how much it drags after the second half. The idea could've been captured quicker and efficiently had it been perhaps 5 chapters shorter. I would've been wowed. Not a lot happens, it's a character study, but with both characters being passive it becomes tedious.
jolenemarie's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
premxs's review against another edition
4.0
This was the perfect quarantine book. Lovely, luxuriant, leisurely prose; gently evocative threads of stories tying human and animal lives. Some of the parallels between these lives are drawn better than others, and some of the flashback mini-chapters are jarring in their time shifts. But on the whole, this is a book to take your time with, to sink into for a while. Sometimes, that's what you need most from a book.
emeraldcityreader's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
nordstina's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Happiness is a reflective book on the interconnectedness of lives and resilience in the face of trauma. It is a slow, thoughtful book. While there is a driving plot through most of it, it is more about the connections that the characters have with one another. Jean is living in London studying the urban fox population. While crossing a bridge she runs into Attila, a Ghanaian psychiatrist who is in town to give a talk on trauma. He plans to meet with his niece while in town and finds her gone from her apartment- picked up in an immigration raid along with her son who runs away from the home he is placed in temporarily. What transpires is a city-wide search for the boy by Attila, Jean, and her connections through the city. It is nice seeing all different types of people come together for a common purpose. But the quiet moments between the characters are memorable and deeply resonant. It's a quiet book that won't work for everyone, but I enjoyed.
zoe_werdy's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was a beautifully written book full of small details and observations. The characters were believable, loveable and very diverse, I felt like I was truly stepping into other people's lives when I read this book. It was slow paced, and I found some of the flashback scenes uninteresting but I liked how everything linked together in the end. A nice cosy read.