How to be happy The success myth busted

Pick of the best new fiction and non-fiction

2023-06-03 -

FICTION

THE HAPPY COUPLE Naoise Dolan

W&N, £16.99 (ebook £7.99)

Luke and Celine are happy. They have been together for a while – the logical next step, surely, is getting married. It doesn’t matter if they actually want to be with other people, or prefer playing the piano to being with one another, does it? In Naoise Dolan’s new novel following the excellent Exciting Times, she explores LGBTQ+ identity, how our families form us and subversive female characters in the best possible way. The Happy Couple explores bisexuality, heartbreak and complex characters without ambiguity or cliche, and consistently shows every character as flawed, with a really brilliant plot designed around a day none of us want to come. With some chapters written like a diary and others coming from characters we may presume will be insignificant, this book skilfully explores multiple perspectives on one relationship, and has a brilliantly engaging, voyeuristic feel. Each perspective could be a novel in itself, and Dolan once again crafts a brilliant story that leaves you desperately wanting more.

YELLOWFACE Rebecca F. Kuang

9/10

The Borough Press, £16.99 (ebook £9.99) Yellowface is bold, confronting and unlike anything else you’ll read this year. Told from the perspective of white writer Junie – an

entirely unreliable narrator – it weaves a gripping tale of racial politics, asking who gets to tell what stories. Junie is jealous of her successful author friend Athena, who is Asian. When Athena dies in a freak accident, Junie decides to steal the manuscript for her latest masterpiece and publish it as her own – to great success. It’s a book about Chinese workers in the First World War and displays Junie’s mental gymnastics Junie in justifying why she’s telling this story, while toning down the racism and making white characters more sympathetic. Success comes at a price and soon Junie is trapped in a cycle of accusations and social media abuse. Unbelievably delusional, she really thinks she’s the victim, not the person who stole someone else’s work and passed it off as her own. It’s heavy-handed in parts, but that feels to the point. Pacy, it reads almost like a thriller – you won’t want to put it down, despite the main voice being desperately dislikeable.

8/10

BIG SWISS

Jen Beagin

Faber & Faber, £16.99 (ebook £9.99)

Big Swiss is Jen Beagin’s third novel and is a tale of sly voyeurism and sexual drama. We’re introduced to Greta, a 45-year-old pharmacy technician who gives up her job and 10-year relationship to share a rundown house with an anorexic, weed-selling cocaine addict. She meets Big Swiss via her transcription work for a sex and relationship coach and becomes infatuated. The two start an affair – Flavia, or Big Swiss as Greta calls her, is larger than life and as damaged as Greta, due to past trauma. Their relationship is doomed to fail, but we are kept wondering if they can overcome their past traumas and move on. It’s darkly funny, full of clever analogies and quite emotive.

7/10

NON-FICTION

THE SUCCESS MYTH Emma Gannon

Torva, priced £16.99 (ebook £10.99)

This is a thoroughly thoughtprovoking and engaging read. Emma Gannon’s The Success Myth explores the commonly held myths about what it traditionally means to be successful, from money to happiness and ticking society’s ready-made boxes. Through looking at her own journey and interviewing other successful people, Gannon delves into the reasons why our overly celebrated and traditional version of success might be making us feel lonely, unfulfilled, and dispirited – but she believes there is a way to do things differently. The Success Myth aims to help you discover what truly sparks your interests and how to uncover your individual path to a fulfilling life, whatever that may look like. You will not be able to put this book down.

8/10

CHILDREN’S BOOK

I AM OLIVER THE OTTER Pam Ayres

Macmillan Children’s Books, £12.99 (ebook £8.99)

Telling the story of Oliver the Otter and his life on the river bank, the story is interwoven with facts about these lovely animals. Did you know, for example, that sea otters like to sleep holding paws in pairs and that they can be found all over world except Australia and Antarctica? During his journey of discovery, Oliver meets Ottilie, the “silkiest and nicest” otter he has ever seen, and before long, the couple have pups. Cosying up together, the family settles down in their underground home until the babies are old enough to swim. The book issues an important plea to children to help look after waterways and free them from pollution. It is sure to delight youngsters who are aged from two to 10.