Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, "The Geography of Bliss" takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness."
Read More
Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, "The Geography of Bliss" takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness."
Read Less
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $0.99, good condition, Sold by ZBK Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Woodland Park, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Used book in good and clean conditions. Pages and cover are intact. Limited notes marks and highlighting may be present. May show signs of normal shelf wear and bends on edges. Item may be missing CDs or access codes. May include library marks. Fast Shipping.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss to cart. $0.99, fair condition, Sold by ZBK Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Woodland Park, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. Used book-May contain writing notes highlighting bends or folds. Text is readable book is clean and pages and cover mostly intact. May show normal wear and tear. Item may be missing CD. May include library marks. Fast Shipping.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.24, good condition, Sold by More Than Words rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Waltham, MA, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Center Point.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. GoodFormer Library book. All orders guaranteed and ship within 24 hours. Your purchase supports More Than Words, a nonprofit job training program for youth, empowering youth to take charge of their lives by taking charge of a business.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.39, good condition, Sold by Your Online Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Houston, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Twelve.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.77, fair condition, Sold by Gulf Coast Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Memphis, TN, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Twelve.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.78, good condition, Sold by OnlineGoodwill rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Nashville, TN, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. A copy that has been read, but remains in clean condition. All pages are solid. the cover is intact, but may show scuffs or light creases, as well as a possible rolled corner. The spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, The former owner may have written their name inside the front or back cover. COVER WILL VARY.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.78, fair condition, Sold by Once Upon A Time Books rated 2.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Tontitown, AR, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. This is a used book. It may contain highlighting/underlining and/or the book may show heavier signs of wear. It may also be ex-library or without dustjacket. This is a used book. It may contain highlighting/underlining and/or the book may show heavier signs of wear. It may also be ex-library or without dustjacket.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.78, fair condition, Sold by Once Upon A Time Books rated 2.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Tontitown, AR, UNITED STATES, published 2008 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. This is a used book. It may contain highlighting/underlining and/or the book may show heavier signs of wear. It may also be ex-library or without dustjacket. This is a used book. It may contain highlighting/underlining and/or the book may show heavier signs of wear. It may also be ex-library or without dustjacket.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the to cart. $1.89, like new condition, Sold by LaFonde rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Riverhead, NY, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Twelve.
Add this copy of The Geography of Bliss to cart. $1.97, fair condition, Sold by Goodwill of Colorado rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Twelve.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. This item is in overall acceptable condition. Covers and dust jackets are intact but may have heavy wear including creases, bends, edge wear, curled corners or minor tears as well as stickers or sticker-residue. Pages are intact but may have minor curls, bends or moderate to considerable highlighting/ writing. Binding is intact; however, spine may have heavy wear. Digital codes may not be included and have not been tested to be redeemable and/or active. A well-read copy overall. Please note that all items are donated goods and are in used condition. Orders shipped Monday through Friday! Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Orders shipped Monday through Friday. Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Thank you!
So...I hate to be the guy that writes the only bad review-but really, I don't know how you could find the read to be fascinating. He doesnt really dive deep...It is more of a study conducted as a term paper than a real read. I found myself reading...and reading...kept reading, really I wanted to like the book, but a couple of hundred pages in, I asked myself, what the hell have I gained from this? The humor was very basic, didn't even crack a grin ;). Maybe you will like it, I couldnt bring myself to read the last 30 pages even for the sense of accomplishment of finishing another book.
slumdog1
Aug 20, 2009
Easy reading
Very well written; entertaining; educational and a book you can easily pickup (but hard to put down).
Rubycanary
Mar 19, 2009
Enjoy this with a good cup fo coffee.
The NPR correspondent goes around the world, travelling to the places considered the happiest to discover their collective secrets. We often relate our happiness to our geography, and he seeks to find out if this has any truth to it. "With our words, we subconsciously conflate geography and happiness. We speak of searching for happiness, of finding contentment, as if these were locations in an atlas, actual places that we could visit if only we had the proper map and the right navigational skills. Anyone who has taken a vacation to, say, some Caribbean island and had flash through their mind the uninvited thought, 'I could be happy here' knows what I mean."
He travels to the Netherlands where happiness is being researched scientifically, to Switzerland where shear boredom and cleanliness seems to be the answer to the world's purported happiest people, to Bhutan where happiness is a government goal and mandate. In Qatar he finds folks who think money can buy anything, including happiness, to Iceland - the happiness of failure, and in Thailand where happiness is just plain not thinking about it. In Moldova he finds the concept that happiness is always somewhere else, and in the US where it is in the place you consider home.
I laughed outloud three times while reading just the opening page. Weiner's descriptions are so good, I was brought back to the places I've been, and felt a huge since of desire for the places I haven't seen yet. Except for Moldova. Moldova is the one place he visited that isn't happy. They are described as the unhappiest people in the world. Their reasoning is that they don't have enough money. But as Weiner viewed in Bhutan, money isn't as important as a strong sense of culture and belonging. 90% of Bhutanese that have a chance to study in the US or Britain return to their home country, even though there is virtually no economy there. (To which an American tourist commented, "well, why would they do that.") The real reason Weiner encounters for unhappiness is a lack of trust and true friendships, two qualities that are belittled as weakness in Moldova.
Overall, I just found this to be an intensely enjoyable book.
