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Happy: Why more or less everything is absolutely fine Paperback – International Edition, January 24, 2017

4.4 out of 5 stars 4,051 ratings

Everyone says they want to be happy. But that's much more easily said than done. What does being happy actually mean? And how do you even know when you feel it?

Across the millennia, philosophers have thought long and hard about happiness, and come up with all sorts of different definitions and ideas for how we might live a happier life. Here, Derren explores the history of happiness from classical times until today, when the self-help industry has attempted to claim happiness as its own. His aim is to reclaim happiness for us all, and enable us to appreciate the really good things in life for what they are.

Fascinating, entertaining and revelatory, this is a book for anyone who has ever wondered if there must be more to life...

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About the Author

Derren began his UK television career in December 2000 with a series of specials called Mind Control. Since redefining the genre of magic for intelligent, modern audiences, he has become synonymous with the art of psychological manipulation. His TV shows have become must-see events. Amongst a varied and notorious career, Derren has played Russian Roulette on live television, convinced middle-managers to commit an armed robbery in the street, led the nation in a séance, stuck viewers to their sofas, successfully predicted the National Lottery, motivated a shy man to land a packed passenger plane at 30,000 feet, exposed psychic and faith-healing charlatans, and hypnotised a man to assassinate Stephen Fry. On top of this he tours the UK every year w ith a sell-out stage show .

He has published three books:
Tricks of the Mind, Confessions of a Conjuror and a book of his caricatures,Portraits.

At home, Derren is a quiet 41-year old w ho paints, keeps a parrot and enjoys Bach. He dislikes mushrooms and blue cheese, and w ishes he could play the piano.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bantam Press
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 24, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 448 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0593076206
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593076200
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.27 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.02 x 1.22 x 9.21 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 4,051 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4,051 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book readable and thought-provoking, with one mentioning it helped them flip their mindset on life. The writing quality receives mixed feedback, with some finding it wittily written while others note it's long.

28 customers mention "Readability"28 positive0 negative

Customers find the book readable and engaging, with one mentioning it's worth the effort to finish despite its length.

"...Nevertheless, this is an extraordinary and life-changing book. Really enjoyed it so much!" Read more

"It’s an amazing book. Many times after finishing a reading session, I had something new about to think...." Read more

"...Mr. Brown has a really really good mind and he is also extremely well-read. Unfortunately, Mr. Brown is not as gifted a writer as he is a thinker...." Read more

"...An impactful book on many levels. For me, interesting, thought provoking, challenging and potentialyl life changing...." Read more

22 customers mention "Thought provoking"22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking, describing it as insightful and impactful, with one customer highlighting its great mental models and another noting how it helped them change their perspective on life.

"...He also discusses helpful, practical ways in which we can deal with anger, hurt, aggression, addiction, and the ever-present fear of death..." Read more

"...apply his words into a stressful situation in my life and felt a great relief. He wrote really well...." Read more

"...The book does an amazing job exploring ideas of happiness, anger, death, and various stoic philosophies...." Read more

"I liked how the book was structured. Many great mental models to help with lowering anxiety and becoming more of who you truly are...." Read more

19 customers mention "Writing quality"12 positive7 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the writing style of the book, with some finding it wittily written while others describe it as empty and filled with nothingness.

"...other Stoics, and making them both accessible and understandable to a 21st century audience...." Read more

"...I didn't; although, this is down to his rather inelegant turn of phrase, or use of the English language and not because I disagreed with or was not..." Read more

"...He wrote really well...." Read more

"I liked how the book was structured. Many great mental models to help with lowering anxiety and becoming more of who you truly are...." Read more

3 customers mention "Length"0 positive3 negative

Customers find the book's length negative.

"...journey that causes the book to be as long as it is and, it is a pretty long read...." Read more

"it is long and poorly written" Read more

"Too too too long" Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2016
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    American readers can be forgiven for never having heard of Derren Brown at all. To most Brits, he’s best known as a master illusionist, one whose shows continue to delight and confound (apart from the rare few who persist in the belief that he employs stooges, a fact that he steadfastly denies). I heartily enjoyed Derren’s earlier book, Tricks of the Mind, but Confessions of a Conjuror left me a little cold.

    All of which brings us to this: Happy. Not to mince words, I believe that Derren’s latest book will be truly life-changing for the right type of reader. It is that rarest of books: one that I felt had been written for me personally. There’s very little about magic or illusion in here. This is essentially a 400+ page discourse on the ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism, and how one might usefully and practically apply it to their own life in order to help bring about that most elusive of goals: Happiness.

    Stoicism wasn’t anything new to me. I had fallen in love with the Mediatations of Marcus Aurelius when I was a teenager, and it’s still a book that I pull regularly from the shelf to this day. Derren Brown’s success is in taking the teachings of Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and the other Stoics, and making them both accessible and understandable to a 21st century audience. His method for doing this (the “trick,” if you will) entails the reader coming to understand that his or her entire life is a story; a narrative; one that we tell ourselves about ourselves, and one which ultimately shapes our self-perceptions and worldview.

    Many of the principles which can be found at the core of the Stoic philosophy are utterly simple; the devil lies in the execution. Brown explains in great detail how supposedly negative events themselves rarely hurt us; it is usually our beliefs, feelings, or judgments concerning those events which do.

    Much space is devoted to the fact that material goods, money, and other ephemeral pleasures rarely serve to bring true lasting happiness. Brown talks about the reasons why this is, citing a great deal of scientific research in addition to quoting other learned authors on the subject of happiness. He also discusses helpful, practical ways in which we can deal with anger, hurt, aggression, addiction, and the ever-present fear of death (the book ends on a tour de force note, with a section on how we can die well).

    The book can also be seen as an assault on the multi-billion dollar industry of self-help and positive thinking. Derren reserves much of his ire for fads such as The Secret, and details extensively how “the power of positive thinking” can actually be harmful to us. Take the example of the U.S. airman captured by enemy forces during the Vietnam War. It is both saddening and enlightening to hear that many of those men who did not survive their brutal captivity were optimists by nature, and insisted on thinking positively: “We’ll be out by Christmas…OK, we’ll be out by the 4th of July…OK, we’ll be out by Thanksgiving…” When holiday after holiday rolled around and they found themselves to be still incarcerated, many of these POWs began to literally curl up and die…whereas the officer who fell back upon the principals of Seneca and the Stoics made it through eight years of hell, ultimately surviving to regain his freedom.

    I am going to make a concerted attempt to incorporate some of these concepts into my own way of thinking and living, and I heartily commend Derren’s book to everybody. Everybody. We can all learn something from this well thought-out piece of philosophical writing, and I would go so far as to say that it is currently my favorite book of 2016.

    Pick up a copy and read it carefully. I doubt that you’ll be disappointed.
    71 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2022
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    This is a life-changing book, especially the first part. The author so eloquently presents to you in such an empathetic way how you can consider living your life by applying a few Stoic principles such that you experience more peace with yourself and other people. I could immediately apply his words into a stressful situation in my life and felt a great relief. He wrote really well. This could be a PhD - the amount of thought he put into integrating old thoughts from modern thoughts, covering both breadth and depth. I was so happy to have found this book. Thank you, Derren Brown, for sharing your insights and wisdom with us.

    I got to know about him through someone mentioning him when I was trying to learn about hypnosis and then I watched "Miracle" on Netflix. In this magician and performer, is such an extraordinary, clear-minded thinker and writer.

    I would say the book can be divided into three parts. The first part is an introduction to Stoic philosophy and how it can be implemented into your life, the second part about fame and the third part about death. They feel quite distinct from each other, as he draws less from philosophy for the second and third parts, and I definitely feel the first part is the best.

    The ending was a bit abrupt and I thought could be written a bit better so as not to undermine all the hard work he did in the first part to help someone be in control of their emotions. It felt like at the end, it was all let loose, it doesn't quite matter, it was also important to listen to how you feel, and follow those stories where they lead... when in the first part, he put such a strong case for watching out for those stories and then later on choosing your own story.

    Nevertheless, this is an extraordinary and life-changing book. Really enjoyed it so much!
    14 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    It’s an amazing book. Many times after finishing a reading session, I had something new about to think. The book does an amazing job exploring ideas of happiness, anger, death, and various stoic philosophies.

    I gave it four stars as the book had some passages that came off as self-aggrandizing.
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I liked how the book was structured. Many great mental models to help with lowering anxiety and becoming more of who you truly are.
    I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the history of things with actionable processes and memorable stories.
    I gave it a 5 star rating because it really helped me flip my mindset on life and because he wasn't scared to talk about death. Those chapters helped me accept my own death more. Love the many thought experiments.
    2 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2020
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Darren addresses issues that we face daily, and tackles them for what they are. We have been duped by "positive thinking" community, by telling us that through conjuring universal energy one can manifest anything: cars, perfect partners, win lottery etc., and most of us were disappointed when such don't manifest themselves after clearly "seeing" them in our minds. Eventually we felt unhappy and resentful, the danger of that is when such, as promised, don't manifest themselves we start to question our faith and abilities.

    I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to face the reality of life and wants addresse it for what they are.
    5 people found this helpful
    Report

Top reviews from other countries

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  • Marcos Paulo Soares
    4.0 out of 5 stars Termos um tanto quanto eruditos
    Reviewed in Brazil on September 16, 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    O livro é muito bom e o autor aprofunda bastante no assunto.
    Achei um pouco denso demais e para uma leitura em inglês sofri um pouco porque ele usa termos não tão comuns.
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  • Zubin
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful
    Reviewed in India on September 30, 2022
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Excellent book. Highly recommend. So much of it rang true and so different from some motivational self help book that only sets one up for disappointment. Loved the references to stoicism. It has made me want to read up more on stoic philosophy.
  • ProductProphet
    5.0 out of 5 stars Life-changing
    Reviewed in Canada on January 11, 2025
    Fantastic book packed with practical advice.
  • sandrine marchand
    5.0 out of 5 stars very good job thank you
    Reviewed in France on March 5, 2019
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    I had no doubt that the job would be once again, of quality, I was not mistaken.
    A big work for such a good summary about happyness and fear od dead. Thank you for the work you have done.
    I dont' know how much time you saved me, but certainly a lot !! Ther is no need to read books about philosophers, the job has been done in this book: happy.
  • Laura
    5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing read
    Reviewed in Spain on January 28, 2019
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Wonderfully insightful in a way that makes you rethink all of the modern concepts of happiness and our contemporary worries. Truly worth reading!