Paths to Happiness: 50 Ways to Add Joy to Your Life Every Day is a little cookbook for happiness. The author offers fifty entrees you might sample, and suggests ways for you to cook up your own versions of any you particularly like each day. Some are quite enormous, like Forgiveness and Self-Compassion and Authenticity, and might take years to actually do on a daily basis. Some are tiny, and could be tried in a weekend, like Birding or Tai Chi or Power Napping. All-in-all, a nice way to taste fifty ways to happiness and see which might work for you. ( )

With the plethora of self-help books available, an addition to their ranks needs to offer something new in order to earn more than passing notice. The author of this book, a licensed psychologist and university professor, offers 50 suggestions for cultivating happiness based on positive psychology research. All of the recommendations are evidence-based, with the reference list providing citations that support each of the 50 recommendations. Some of the cited works are classics by Jung, Freud, May, James, and the like, while many others are citations to more recent research in psychological and medical journals.

Some of the suggestions are activities, while others are emotions or states of mind. Recommended activities include things like community singing, cooking and baking, genealogy, knitting, prayer, travel, and volunteering, all activities that have added joy to my own life. I found the emotions/states of mind slightly less persuasive and somewhat repetitive. Is there really a difference between awe and a sense of wonder? Yet these are two separate recommendations.

This book provides useful suggestions for coping with the mild depression, or “blues”, that often follow a life-changing event like divorce or a bereavement. The book seems to be designed as a gift book, and it would make a thoughtful gift for a friend or relative who is coping with a major life change. It may also be useful for counselors or therapists to share with clients either in its entirety or by selecting recommended activities for homework assignments.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's early Reviewers program. ( )

Interesting book. ( )

I received this as an Early Reviewers selection. I am a pretty happy person normally, but was curious as to what other insights I might learn from this book. The book is a smallish book; mine is hardcover and very well made. Inside are fifty ways to help yourself be happy. Each idea is presented in two or three pages and explained as to what it is and how it affects your happiness or your attitude. The last page of each 'path to happiness' is a list of more practical ways to begin that particular activity. One example is 'Mentoring". The term is explained and a short history of the mentoring idea is given. At the end of the three short pages, a blue box lists ways and guidelines to sharing your mastery of a subject. 1. choose an activity that reflects your personal interests. This will minimize burnout. 2. Be realistic. No relationship is perfect, so expect occasional snags. 3. To best promote your mentee's growth, encourage decision making rather than dependence. 4. Be an active listener. Allow your nemtee to offer fresh ideas and methods in your work together. You'll both benefit.

I did enjoy this book, but realized that for me, reading straight through wasn't the best way. I looked at the index and chose topics that interested me and skimmed through others that were not in my interest box. All in all, a very interesting book. ( )

Paths to Happiness: 50 Ways to Add Joy to Your Life Every Day by Edward Hoffman
Chronicle Books
Hardbound Edition
Publication Date: August 16, 2016

Drawing heavily on the premises of positive psychology, this small sized book provides fifty recommendations to individuals for increasing personal fulfillment and joyfulness. Each "topic" is backed up by specific scientific studies and presented in a short chapter, consisting of four or five pages. Readers seeking more in-depth information about a specific idea will generally be left to their own devices to find relevant books or reputable online sources.

Some of the individual ideas presented in this book are not novel. For example, volunteering, expressive writing and gratitude have often been mentioned in psychology related news stories or magazine articles, as possible methods to increase feelings of well-being. However there are other ideas presented that I had not considered before reading this book, such as Acting Improv. Not that I am likely to seek out an improv class in the future, but never say never. Although I have mixed feelings about positive psychology, some of the ideas presented in this book were interesting and I probably will try out a few specific suggestions in the future.

I appreciated that the author included an introductory chapter. It might have been helpful to present more information about the history and applications of positive psychology, especially for readers who aren't familiar with this branch of psychology.

Overall, this was a pleasant reading experience. I chose to read three or four topics each evening and that gave me something uplifting to focus on before drifting off to sleep.

Thank you to Chronicle Books and Hachette Book Group, for providing me with this book to review. ( )