The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World
by: Eric Weiner
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Product Description:
Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness." The book uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash?Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? With engaging wit and surprising insights, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions. (2007)
Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness." The book uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash?Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? With engaging wit and surprising insights, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions. (2007)
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- Funny, interesting and Educational
I was in a severe book reading rut, caused in part by the awful book "Power of Now".Geography of Bliss is compared to Walk in the Woods, which is also a great book.However this is no copycat book. It is unique and interesting.The only similarities are that both Bryson and Weiner are funny, they do good research on their topics and they keep the reader entertained.Weiner the self describedgrump travels to 10 countries to disect what traits contribute to happiness. Along the way he meets interesting ... Read More
Rating: 
- Witty, enjoyable, but it does have its flaws
I read this book about a year ago, and in general I'm glad that I read it, but I agree with other reviewers that it could have been better. I picked it up because this is a subject that I wonder about all the time.The United States is the richest country in the world, but it's certainly not the happiest.I have always wondered which countries have a higher level of happiness than we do and what they're doing right.More money?Fewer laws?Greater organization?And if you moved to a country where people ... Read More
Rating: 
- A collection of bitterness and the most common writing cliches
I grabbed this book from the shelves of my local library (thank Buddha I didn't pay money for it).The title is great and is what compelled me to put it in the stack of books I was checking out.Unfortunately, the title is the best thing about the book.
As I made my way through the first hundred pages of the book I was mildly interested.There were a few entertaining factoids in the book.I have traveled quite a bit but there were some places in the book I hadn't been to or even knew that much about. ... Read More
Rating: - Great book!
This is one of the best books I've read in awhile. Interesting, funny, insightful... I wanted to keep reading, I hope he writes another one. For anyone who is interested in other cultures or likes to wander and discover new places this is an excellent choice.
Rating: 
- Living in Bliss
I am a Mexican citizen living in Qatar, one of the countries visited by the author in the book. I bought it because I wanted to read from the perspective of others how Qatar is like.
His impressions are spot on most of the times. Among other things, he points out with accuracy the differences between casts of expats, and the quasi fantastic life Qataris live- as in lived without adherence to reality.
However, he misses to capture how generous and welcoming the culture can be. Then again, he ... Read More
- Funny, interesting and EducationalI was in a severe book reading rut, caused in part by the awful book "Power of Now".Geography of Bliss is compared to Walk in the Woods, which is also a great book.However this is no copycat book. It is unique and interesting.The only similarities are that both Bryson and Weiner are funny, they do good research on their topics and they keep the reader entertained.Weiner the self describedgrump travels to 10 countries to disect what traits contribute to happiness. Along the way he meets interesting ... Read More
- Witty, enjoyable, but it does have its flawsI read this book about a year ago, and in general I'm glad that I read it, but I agree with other reviewers that it could have been better. I picked it up because this is a subject that I wonder about all the time.The United States is the richest country in the world, but it's certainly not the happiest.I have always wondered which countries have a higher level of happiness than we do and what they're doing right.More money?Fewer laws?Greater organization?And if you moved to a country where people ... Read More
- A collection of bitterness and the most common writing clichesI grabbed this book from the shelves of my local library (thank Buddha I didn't pay money for it).The title is great and is what compelled me to put it in the stack of books I was checking out.Unfortunately, the title is the best thing about the book.
As I made my way through the first hundred pages of the book I was mildly interested.There were a few entertaining factoids in the book.I have traveled quite a bit but there were some places in the book I hadn't been to or even knew that much about. ... Read More
- Great book!This is one of the best books I've read in awhile. Interesting, funny, insightful... I wanted to keep reading, I hope he writes another one. For anyone who is interested in other cultures or likes to wander and discover new places this is an excellent choice.
- Living in BlissI am a Mexican citizen living in Qatar, one of the countries visited by the author in the book. I bought it because I wanted to read from the perspective of others how Qatar is like.
His impressions are spot on most of the times. Among other things, he points out with accuracy the differences between casts of expats, and the quasi fantastic life Qataris live- as in lived without adherence to reality.
However, he misses to capture how generous and welcoming the culture can be. Then again, he ... Read More
