Title: Happier at Home: Kiss More, Jump More, Abandon Self-Control, and My Other Experiments in Everyday Life
Author: Gretchen Rubin
First published September 4, 2012
304 pages, Paperback
ISBN: 9780307886798 (ISBN10: 0307886794)
Rating: 3.53
Overview
Gretchen Rubin, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Happiness Project, is back to share her secrets on how to make your home a happier place. After feeling a wave of homesickness while unloading the dishwasher, Rubin realized that her home was the most important element of a happy life.
This realization led her to embark on a new happiness project focused solely on her home. Through a school year, September through May, Rubin experimented with different themes such as possessions, marriage, time, and parenthood to make her home a place of greater simplicity, comfort, and love.
She even got her family involved in the resolutions. With her signature blend of memoir, science, philosophy, and experimentation, Rubin’s passion for her subject jumps off the page and inspires readers to find more happiness in their own lives.
Get ready to kiss more, jump more, and abandon self-control with Happier at Home.
About the Author
Gretchen Rubin is a highly regarded and insightful observer of human nature and happiness in modern times. She has authored several best-selling books, including The Happiness Project, Better Than Before, Happier at Home, The Four Tendencies, and Outer Order, Inner Calm.
Her newest book is still to be announced.
Rubin co-hosts a well-known and award-winning podcast with her sister, Elizabeth Craft. They share tips and strategies on how to lead a happier life.
She is also the founder of The Happiness Project and has created innovative products to help people achieve their own happiness.
Rubin has had many notable experiences in her career, such as being interviewed by Oprah, dining with Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman, accompanying the Dalai Lama, having her work reported in a medical journal, and even being the answer to a crossword puzzle.
Originally from Kansas City, Rubin began her career in law, but discovered her passion for writing while working as a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. She currently resides in New York City with her family.
Editoral Review
Happier at Home: Kiss More, Jump More, Abandon Self-Control, and My Other Experiments in Everyday Life is a self-help book by the bestselling author Gretchen Rubin. First published in 2012, the book follows Rubin’s personal journey to improve her relationship with herself, her family, and her home.
Rubin is a well-known author and blogger who has written several books on happiness, including the international bestseller The Happiness Project. Her approach to self-help is based on research and personal experimentation, and she draws on a variety of sources, including psychology, philosophy, and literature.
Rubin’s writing style is engaging and relatable, and she uses humor and anecdotes to make her points.
In Happier at Home, Rubin sets out to create a happier and more fulfilling home life for herself and her family.
She develops a list of resolutions, or “commandments,” that she believes will help her achieve her goals. These include “Acknowledge the reality of people’s feelings,” “Identify the problem,” and “Simplify.”
Throughout the book, Rubin shares her experiences as she tries to follow her resolutions.
She tackles a variety of challenges, from improving her marriage to decluttering her home. Along the way, she learns important lessons about herself and the people around her.
One of the strengths of Happier at Home is Rubin’s honesty and vulnerability. She doesn’t try to hide her flaws or present herself as a perfect person.
Instead, she shares her insecurities and mistakes, which makes her more relatable to readers. Rubin also incorporates interesting historical and cultural references into the book, which add another layer of depth to her narrative.
However, one weakness of Happier at Home is that some of the resolutions Rubin sets out feel overly simplistic or generic. For example, “Be Gretchen” is one of her commandments, but it’s not entirely clear what that means or how it can be applied.
Additionally, some readers may find Rubin’s focus on improving her own happiness rather than addressing societal or political issues to be limited in scope.
Overall, Happier at Home is a well-written and enjoyable book that offers valuable insights into how to improve one’s home life.
While it may not be for everyone, readers who are interested in self-improvement will find much to appreciate in Rubin’s writing.
I recommend Happier at Home to anyone who is looking to create a more fulfilling home life.
Whether you’re a stay-at-home parent or a busy professional, Rubin’s advice is accessible and adaptable. Her approach to self-help is grounded in research and personal experience, and she offers concrete tips and strategies for readers to follow.
I give Happier at Home a rating of 4 out of 5 stars.
