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Jan 11, 2012

Danielle rated it:

entertaining, but scattered and lacking in substance.

ms. dunn really needs to put more focus on character development and the climax. i could not understand what motivated these people to do what they did because each character was filled with fluff and nutella. that being said, i rarely understand people, yet find them amusing and enjoyable, so can't (won't) discount this book on that basis.

as for the climax....i'm still wondering where the WOW factor is? it was all s More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 02, 2012

June rated it:

Of course no one can resist a needy puppy, so this was a good ploy to humanize the protagonist, whose shallow, pointless life is rescued first by adopting a dog with brain cancer and then by adopting another puppy who has been left in the pound. Throw in some cute neglected dogs and everyone is happy (according to the old Hollywood adage)! Thus, this novel is full of cliches, both linguistically and in depiction of its of characters.

I lived in NYC and and know that not every woman bel More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 12, 2009

Anika rated it:

I just reviewed this novel. I didn't realize until after I read the whole thing that I had read her earlier novel, Big Love. This one has a similarly confused ex-evangelical main character. A love story, sort of. Chick lit, sort of. Drama, sort of. Comedy, sort of. Nice.

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Aug 16, 2008

Miriam rated it:

This made me laugh out loud. So it gets 5 stars.

6 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 25, 2009

Kristi rated it:

I almost didn't finish the book because it was about a bunch of New Yorkers doing drugs and having casual sex and affairs, desperately dating people they actually despise based on superficial characteristics, and spending outrageous amounts of money on really stupid stuff.

However, it turns out it is a good story and a good bit of the book is about the protagonist, Holly Frick, and how she doesn't approve of the garbage. She even tells people she doesn't approve.

And the More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

Jess rated it:

I have heard numerous female authors complain about the fact that any book about a woman by a woman gets unfairly ghettoized into the "pink section" of the bookstore. Sarah Dunn's author protagonist complains about this very thing in this book, in fact. While I've never seen Dunn make this complaint directly about her own work, she's perhaps the "women's fiction" author whose complaints in this direction would be most justified. This oddly philosophical foray into the complic More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 17, 2009

Ariela rated it:

“Secrets to Happiness” revolves around the lives of several thirty and forty something New Yorkers whose lives are loosely connected through their friendship with the main character, a writer named Holly Frick. Holly’s husband left her even though she’s still in love with him, her novel “Hello, Mr. Heartache” was unsuccessful, and now she finds herself writing for a tween television show she despises. Needless to say, Holly is not a happy woman, and the other characters aren’t any better off. Ho More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 29, 2009

Colleen rated it:

Though I thought this book would be a fairly typical example of the chick-lit genre, I was pleased to discover it was much edgier and funnier than expected. Holly is not your typical heroine, and can in fact be quite annoying at times. Her interactions with the dog Chester unexpectedly make her much more a character than a characterization, and make this novel stronger. Best friend Amanda is easy to dislike, and though I thought her actions could have been more fully fleshed out while the story More...

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Jun 10, 2009

Hilarie rated it:

Sarah Dunn is a truly talented writer. Her writing is witty, lively, and flows beautifully. However, for me, Secrets to Happiness wasn't the book to showcase that talent. In fairness, let me start off by saying that I am probably outside of the target demographic of this book. I am a fairly conservative, career woman turned stay-at-home mother, who is totally devoted to my husband and children. The characters in this novel would likely describe me as a naive optimist.

The central charac More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 22, 2009

christa rated it:

I'm not sure why I thought a book about a single woman writer living in Manhattan wouldn't be chick lit, since most chick lit begins with those very same ingredients. It's kind of like taking ground beef, adding orange powder, serving it in a hard shell and saying "But it's not a taco."

But in Jancy Willett's review of "Secrets of Happiness" in the NYT's Book Review, she says point blank: " ["Secrets of Happiness":] was definitely not written just fo More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 17, 2009

Cindi rated it:

Holly was one of the most annoying characters I've ever read about. She was, however, very much of the opinion that one should always do the morally right thing - even tho her "friends" repeatedly told her that her "hypocrisy" was what drove them away from her (certainly it wasn't their affairs while they were dating or married to her, or even her best friend's fault when she decided to elope with Holly's current boyfriend). I was really quite flabergasted because I hear th More...

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Apr 08, 2011

Khaya rated it:

Okay -- before I rip this book, I will say some positive things. I give the author credit for trying to write a chick lit book that transcends the genre by having some depth and asking some philosophical questions. Holly, the main character, is from a religious Christian background (though she is not currently affiliated) and frequently contemplates the morality of her Manhattan friends' happiness-seeking behavior, not to mention the elusive nature of the happiness they pursue. Her friends ge More...

6 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 18, 2011

Alexandra rated it:

I LOVED this book. Simply adored everything about it, even the parts I didn't like, if that makes sense. At first, while reading the book, I thought that the cover was a little misleading. It seemed like one of those covers you find on those "feel good" books about women in their mid-thirties who find themselves and then find the perfect man, getting involved with all kinds of cheesy, kooky antics along the way. (This book is nothing like that.) But then, after I finished the book, I r More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 06, 2010

Michelle rated it:

Purportedly about a woman recovering from a divorce and a dog she adopts. I don't read too much "chick lit" and normally that description would not be enough to make me pick up the book. However, I really liked the author's prior book and she has a great voice - smart, funny (in a dry sort of way), never cliche. The same can be said for this book. She has a fabulous sense of humor and writes in unexpected ways. That said, the book was okay-to-good for me, not great. First of all, it's More...

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Mar 27, 2011

Jane rated it:

Well, I've just read Room and Never Let Me Go, two pretty intense books. I picked this one up from the library because I like that "Happiness" is in the title and I needed a break from abuse/rape/genocide. It was funny. I laughed more than most of the people who reviewed this book. I loved the dogs in the book. The protagonist, Holly, was sort of pathetic, but in an "I've felt this sorry for myself," kind of way. The cover on my book isn't half so wonderful as the cover on th More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 19, 2009

Christin rated it:

Secrets to Happiness proved to be the ideal read for my flight to Ireland. It was breezy, entertaining, and also very funny. I also enjoyed the meta observations on the perils of writing chick lit. It was not overly predictable, which is a mark of Dunn's talent without sacrificing readability. However, I found it extremely lazy that she would often indicate pregnant pauses with "--" rather than make the effort of explicating them. I am a stickler for words, words, words whenever More...

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Jun 09, 2009

Serena rated it:

"A lot of life, it seemed to Holly, was turning out to be just like that. You keep walking, and you keep breathing, and then one day you notice, again, the feel of the wind on your cheek." (Page 275)

Secrets to Happiness by Sarah Dunn focuses on the life of Holly Frick and each of the people she effects with her decisions and how their decisions impact her life in a gigantic web. From Holly's ex-boyfriend Spence Samuelson to Betsy Silverstein and her friends Amanda and Mark More...

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Sep 23, 2010

Elaina rated it:

Another good book for a plane ride.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 26, 2011

QueenAmidala28 rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jun 19, 2009

Esme Pie rated it:

I don't have a "chick lit" shelf because I don't read much of it. But sometimes, it's just what the librarian ordered. AND best librarian ever, Nancy Pearl, recommended this author. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Dunn is a very funny writer--some of her observations were so right on, you could imagine them being said by a stand-up comedienne, but they don't read as wise cracks, or as being inserted frivolously because the author knows how funny she is. Thoro More...

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Apr 13, 2011

Swissmiss rated it:

This was a highly entertaining peek into the lives of several more-or-less neurotic New Yorkers looking for love. I very much enjoyed the dialogue and the characters. It read a lot like a rom-com movie.

The only drawback for me was that although one character, Holly, seems to be the lead character, about half of the chapters were from the point of view of other characters, some of whom had little or nothing to do with Holly. I kept waiting for the story lines to pull together, but they More...

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Jun 19, 2009

Kelly rated it:

This book was a total treat to read. Seriously, my husband had to leave the room, because I had to stop quite often in order to read him a passage. When something is that good, I have to share. I would compare this work to one of my all time favorites "Heartburn" by Nora Ephron, because like Heartburn, it had moments that just cracked me up and were completely impossible to not share. Also I totally could not put this book down! Sarah Dunn has an absolute powerful way of bringing her c More...

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Jan 26, 2012

Pamela rated it:

So many things missed the mark for me with this book. The most obvious: when the cover of a book has only a picture of dog you expect the dog to have a decent role in the story but nope, not this one. The dog is hardly mentioned as far as it affects the supposed lead character (Holly). Speaking of lead characters, there really isn't one even though the book jacket leads you to believe there is one. There are only several poorly developed, self-absorbed thirty-somethings who are trying to find lo More...

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Sep 06, 2009

Karen rated it:

As I first started reading this book I thought the writing was funny and clever. In fact, I laughed out loud a few times which is unusual for me when I am reading a book. But by about page 100 I started to get weary of the whining and lack of integrity of most of the characters. The protagonist Holly, I found especially annoying and it's hard to read a book when you find the lead character annoying. It finished nicely and redeemed itself somewhat- Enough that I am curious to read the author' More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 21, 2009

J. added it

Read this book in one sitting. I liked it and it gave me a lot to think about. I LOVED The Big Love, really admired it, but this one seems more sophisticated. My least favorite parts were the Leonard parts. I loved the Betsy storyline and even the Spencer storyline. I wish I could have a discussion with someone about the points in this book--I found myself understanding Spence's point of view at times and that scares me! Hopefully I'm not the only one. I liked Holly a lot, really interest More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 08, 2011

Nicole rated it:

Story of Holly Frick - divorcee, writer, dog rescuer, friend - and the people that fill her life. From a best friend to a former boyfriend to a co-writer they all add a bit to her story, and while doing so you get to peak in on their lives a bit too.

Definitely a light "chick-lit" type of read, but good none the less.

One of my favorite lines from the book (and also a good overview of the story): "That idea of a person's life being a tapestry, and it wasn't More...

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Sep 03, 2009

Felicity rated it:

Cute picture of a dog on the front. I think it's a Jack Russell, though the dog in the story was a beagle. This was a reasonable piece of mindless froth, though most of the characters were a little too self-absorbed for my liking. And it was an all too typical plot: Ohmigod, I'm almost forty, and I don't have any children. I've never met these women. Who are they other than some figment of way too many authors' imaginations?? Maybe all these women live in Manhattan and that's why I've neve More...

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Aug 17, 2009

Patricia rated it:

Okay, so yes, I did get the book because looking at the cover did actually make me happy. The story itself, however, is about unhappy thirty-something New Yorkers trying to find their ways. Holly Frick is accessible as the fairly neurotic and lovelorn female lead and the book is about her and her circle of friends. The plot is engaging but Dunn leaves some ends loose (boytoy Lucas' character needed more). The Betsy character, on the other hand, was fully-fleshed and I really liked her. Dunn goes More...

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May 03, 2009

Melissa rated it:

I think that if I ever actually wrote a novel like I've been meaning to since I was 7 years old, my book would be a lot like Sarah Dunn's. She's funny and meaningful without being sappy. She makes insights about life, particularly life for people in their 30s, that make me feel better about "things." I imagine there are people who would dismiss it as chick lit, and that's a shame. I don't dislike chick lit for what it is, but this book has much more depth and a lot less shoe shopping ( More...

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Jun 27, 2009

Susan rated it:

A group of image-conscious, money-conscious, thirty-something New York Yuppies is about as alien a group as I could encounter, but the author's engaging and funny voice entertained me, so I kept reading long enough to acquire sympathy for nearly all the characters as they came face to face with the limitations of the lifestyle they'd chosen. And one way or another, they seized the opportunities they were given to make changes in their lives. I'm not sure where any of them will be 10 years henc More...

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