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Happy Family
by
Set in the near future, Happy Family is a darkly humorous tale about the filters and frames we use to shield ourselves from reality, and what might happen should we discard them.
Germaine Kiecke was a foundling, an orphan, brought up by the infamous ‘Motherhood’ in a Belgian orphanage. Now she is a successful art academic who defines herself by her profession and prefers to ...more
Germaine Kiecke was a foundling, an orphan, brought up by the infamous ‘Motherhood’ in a Belgian orphanage. Now she is a successful art academic who defines herself by her profession and prefers to ...more
Paperback
Published
February 6th 2020
by Unbound Digital
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Start your review of Happy Family
Part essay on existentialism and defining art, part sci-fi exploration of the future of gaming and – occasionally – part farce, James Ellis’s Happy Family is as enjoyably thought-provoking a read as I’ve had for a while. The author skips easily between deft description of the real and augmented reality worlds. Most of the real-world action takes place in Galicia in the North of Spain and if the author hasn’t been there it’s a miracle of imagination, instead of just high-quality writing, the sens
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I absolutely loved this book. It's quirky and original with some brilliant characters - all of whom are either eccentric, sad or totally bonkers. I admit that the gaming side was tiresome, at times silly - salamanders?? - and often unnecessary, but other than that it's one of my favourite books that I have read with the Pigeonhole. Tom, artist and inventor of the computer game Happy Family, has never quite got over his mother's death and goes to Spain to become a recluse. What's the point in liv
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This is the first book I have read by James Ellis and I was not disappointed. I was lucky enough to read Happy Family on the Pigeonhole in 10 staves with other Pigeons. I found the storytelling brilliant and the detailed descriptions of the characters, not only how they look but also their characteristics, help the reader to imagine the situations they get themselves in! I actually laughed out loud on several occasions whilst reading. A very modern storyline. Thank you Pigeonhole and James Ellis
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Refreshingly different; utterly bonkers and my brain is still trying to work out what was going on. Wonderfully poetic descriptive passages throughout which brought me immense pleasure. Some genuinely laugh out loud moments and an array of eccentric characters. Glad I persevered.
This book was an absolute joy to read. The writing is exceptional and the scene setting ensured I felt right there in the action. A little bit like the virtual reality game that gives the name to the book "Happy Family".
For the author to create a virtual future world as he has, I think, shows a remarkable imagination. It's not an alternative world such as Terry Pratchett might write, but a parallel virtual world to our own accessed through the user wearing new technology called iLets.
Alongside a ...more
For the author to create a virtual future world as he has, I think, shows a remarkable imagination. It's not an alternative world such as Terry Pratchett might write, but a parallel virtual world to our own accessed through the user wearing new technology called iLets.
Alongside a ...more
This is James second novel and there is crossover between this story and his first. However despite that, the story can be enjoyed as a stand alone.
This book is quirky, inventive, hilarious and sad. I found this to be a story about loneliness, jealousy, grief and love. It has you questioning reality and as we move further into the technological era and we become intertwined with CGI, virtual reality and immersive gaming experiences. You will wonder what is real and what is not!
This book is quirky, inventive, hilarious and sad. I found this to be a story about loneliness, jealousy, grief and love. It has you questioning reality and as we move further into the technological era and we become intertwined with CGI, virtual reality and immersive gaming experiences. You will wonder what is real and what is not!
Well where do I start?
Tom is in crisis, he wonders what is the point of life if you then just die.? Why bother?
He drinks to near oblivion most nights and tries to kill himself. He is saved by Alta and her dog, Badger. She decides to move in with Tom to keep an eye on him.
Tom is the creator of Happy Family, an augmented reality game, think The Sims on steroids!!! Nearly everyone is playing, to augment their own lives…..
This is a tale of loneliness and vulnerability but also hope-ish. It’s also a ...more
Tom is in crisis, he wonders what is the point of life if you then just die.? Why bother?
He drinks to near oblivion most nights and tries to kill himself. He is saved by Alta and her dog, Badger. She decides to move in with Tom to keep an eye on him.
Tom is the creator of Happy Family, an augmented reality game, think The Sims on steroids!!! Nearly everyone is playing, to augment their own lives…..
This is a tale of loneliness and vulnerability but also hope-ish. It’s also a ...more
not often you read or hear originality anymore but happy family is a very original novel filled with lots of eccentric and intriguing characters and silliness, but also thought provoking🤔and definitely opens your mind, I could see this book made into a Netflix series one day!
Definitely weird, a gloomy start, but a really enjoyable mix of tech and alternate realities.
Content Warning: Death and suicide.
Going into this book, I had a lot of expectations. A book filled with games, virtual adventures, and the game at risk of shutting down forever, basically another book like Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, but I was completely wrong. And I’m glad I was! Happy Family takes a completely different path focusing on the impact the game has on someone’s life instead of the actual game-play.
Happy Family is a virtual reality game that combines The Sims with dark twists ...more
Going into this book, I had a lot of expectations. A book filled with games, virtual adventures, and the game at risk of shutting down forever, basically another book like Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, but I was completely wrong. And I’m glad I was! Happy Family takes a completely different path focusing on the impact the game has on someone’s life instead of the actual game-play.
Happy Family is a virtual reality game that combines The Sims with dark twists ...more
Happy Family is set in the near future, where people game via glasses and one augmented reality game in particular is very popular: Happy Family. This game was invented by Tom Hannah, also an artist, who has hidden himself away with his suicidal thoughts in Spain in the middle of nowhere, after the death of his mother. Germaine Kiecke, an art academic, is a huge fan of Tom’s and wants to interview him for her new book. But Tom is guarded by a strange girl and three huge dogs who are named after
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Real life, virtual life, plots and sub-plots.
Germaine is a gamer and we see her living a parallel virtual world alongside her real life. She uses the Happy Family game to escape from real life.
The main storyline is set in a Spanish village and we follow Germaine in her efforts to secure an interview with the creator of Happy Family for her book on the arts.
In a world of gaming, in which I know absolutely nothing about, I'm finding this book both quirky and humorous. It brims with quirky characte ...more
Germaine is a gamer and we see her living a parallel virtual world alongside her real life. She uses the Happy Family game to escape from real life.
The main storyline is set in a Spanish village and we follow Germaine in her efforts to secure an interview with the creator of Happy Family for her book on the arts.
In a world of gaming, in which I know absolutely nothing about, I'm finding this book both quirky and humorous. It brims with quirky characte ...more
On the face of it, this is a book about virtual reality, but actually that only makes up a really small part of this story. What it's really about, is what defines us as people. Tom Hannah has dedicated his life to his art, the very art that lies behind the 'Happy Family' game. But he's decided that he no longer wants to be defined by this. And so we begin on an odyssey of a story when Germaine, determined to get a final interview with Hannah, travels to see him, whether he wants to meet with he
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I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book quite like this one. At times it seemed utterly bonkers and I’m still not entirely sure if it was fantasy, reality or a clever merging of the two. That said, I really enjoyed it; the poignancy of the descriptive writing was simply beautiful and the author managed to introduce us to a variety of complex, needy and often unlikeable characters whilst at the same time making us laugh out loud with the absurdity of their actions and speech as well as allowing us to
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One of the most inventive books I have read. Beautiful descriptive writing, intriguing plot, slap stick comedy, pathos and thoughourly bonkers!
Irritating book with too much technical gaming stuff in it
Interesting story line but too much of the book dedicated to a game
Interesting story line but too much of the book dedicated to a game
This was a different read for me. Quite funny and hitech. This book is going to be published in February 2020, I read it in Pigeonhole.
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James has written two novels: The Wrong Story and Happy Family. He has published a number of prize-winning short stories, a travelogue of his journey through Central America and a monthly column for The Gudgeon. His short story, Connor and His Amazing Ejector Boots, was nominated for the 2020 Pushcart Prize. His short story, Kumi’s Cake, was shortlisted for the 2020 Bridport Short Story Prize.
He h ...more
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