Happy All the Time
by Laurie Colwin
published
June 1st 2000
(first published 1978)
by Harper Perennial
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binding
Paperback, 224 pages
isbn
0060955325
(isbn13: 9780060955328)
description
This delightful comedy of manners and morals is about romantic friendship, romantic marriage, and romantic love--about four people who are good-hearte...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 273)
My experience reading this novel was really strange. When I was a senior in high school, I read a short story called "An Old Fashioned Romance" by Colwin in my AP class. I remember being struck, and a little disappointed, by how bright and optimistic the story was - up to that point, I'd understood stories as ominous and never happy. Then I read her author bio and it said that she graduated from Bard in the 70s and, I of course, was going to attend Bard that summer. Long story shor...more
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Ok, I mostly hate romance novels...but this book- and all of Colwin's are so far superior in intelligence, wit, true love, and the human condition that they really aren't true romances. She used to write for the New Yorker, and has also written a couple of lovely cookbooks (Home Cooking is one) as she used to write for Gourmet Mag. too. To any woman who is MY friend I can't recommend her highly enough- she's east coast intelligentsia; huge hearted main characters albeit flawed....folks you alrea...more
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Read in June, 2008
I had a hard time connecting to the characters in this book, with their cigar-smoking, champagne-drinking dinner parties and strange, tidy lives. They just didn't feel like real people. Every so often there was a moment that I could associate with, but otherwise, I felt like I didn't really know the characters any better by the end of the story than I did when I started reading.
If you like the fiction stories in the New Yorker, you'll probably like this one.
If you like the fiction stories in the New Yorker, you'll probably like this one.
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Read in July, 2007
A rather fluffy, slightly dated book about love. The depiction of the ladies seemed especially dated to me (the book was published in 1978) while the gentlemen seemed a little one-dimensional, but some of the descriptions of falling in love were spot on.
This is the first novel I've read by Colwin; it seems less substantial to me than her "Home Cooking" essays, which I've read and really enjoyed. I think I prefer her non-fiction essays.
This is the first novel I've read by Colwin; it seems less substantial to me than her "Home Cooking" essays, which I've read and really enjoyed. I think I prefer her non-fiction essays.
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recommends it for:
mollycakes
well, maybe not the whole book, but the story "An Old Fashioned story" ( which is short enough that it can probably be found online in it's entirety) is the best. A controlling mother keeps trying to set her daughter up with the well behaved son of one of her friends, though the daughter keeps trying to get with his rebellious brother. It sounds cliche but ends up not being and still being really sweet, very good title for the story,too.
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This was the first Laurie Colwin book I read, and I instantly fell is love with her and her style of writing. Like Jane Austen, she doesn't necessarily write a lot of plot, but her character descriptions are amazing. Her characters are quirky and real, and I [nerdily:] come to love them. I'm always sad when I finish reading one of her books because I wish they would just continue.
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Read in March, 2007
I had multiple people recommend Laurie Colwin to me, and so I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. I am about 2/3 of the way in and it's been collecting dust on my nightstand without hope of being returned to. The women are supposed to be plucky, but in light of it being 2007, their much-touted independence and cleverness seem unremarkable, and that dates the book.
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Read in December, 1993
recommends it for:
the whole earth
I didn't want to read this book; my partner, Melynda, insisted. I am so glad that she did. I re-read Happy All The Time at least once a year. It just gets better and better. If I could write a book like this . . . well, I won't finish that. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride. (And if horse turds were biscuits, I'd eat 'til I died.)
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Read in August, 2008
I've enjoyed Colwin's food essays and thought it was time to try some of her fiction. The writing was excellent, with some sentences that I savored. But somehow I didn't fully click with her style. The characters seemed a bit unreal to me, especially Holly. Bought this copy at NYPL book sale and finished reading on plane to Portland.
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This book is like a mid-career Woody Allen movie where nothing bad happens. All the characters are charming, neurotic, and happy, but mostly because their neuroses don't have consequences- or, at least, consequences that don't lead to more happiness. Both heartwarming and unnerving at the same time.
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Read in January, 2002
A short novel about two male cousins and the quirky women they fall in love with. It's got a great timeless quality to it and the characters are likeable and complex (without being exhausting). Colwin writes great short stories, too. I recommend "Passion and Affect", too.
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I loved this book. Just adored it. I read it on the bus ride to Minneapolis over spring break, and think it's just a gorgeous little read for any girl. Especially geeky, intellectual girls. Fun and light, and makes you want a croquembouche at your wedding. Promise. :)
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I probably have a higher opinion of this book than all the others I've read by Laurie Colwin because it was the first. When I finished this book, I sat back and said "Ahhhh," feeling very satisfied and comforted. It's simple and lovely.
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No earth-shattering revelations. No promises to change your life, or even your view of fiction. Just a well-written story about ordinary upper-middle-class characters you'll come to love. It's both funny and touching.
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Read in January, 1999
Laurie Colwin used to write a monthly column in Gourmet magazine -- very friendly and homey. I read and enjoyed all of her books. She died (fairly young, I think) several years ago.
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Read in January, 1995
recommends it for:
fans of domestic comedies
A go-to comfort reads book, featuring one of my favorite crankily romantic heroines of all time, the decidedly non-misty Misty Berkowitz.
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Another Laurie Colwin favorite. Stories that are happy and sweet in the best sense of both words, without being banal or saccharine.
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This book is a realistic, witty, story of two couples--how they meet, become couples, and what happens after. I enjoyed it very much.
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Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
almost everyone
I just reread this for the Kepler's book group. I think it's the third time I've read it -- and it won't be the last! I adore Colwin.
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Read in January, 2008
God, I fucking love this book.
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