Happy That It's Not True

by Carlos Aleman

After a devastating revelation that shatters his world, a man sets sail on a raft with several other men in search of a happier life. Out at sea, he tells a story as a way to work through his personal heartbreak. In transforming his experience into art, he constructs a tale which gives voice to the unloved, the lonely, the rejected, and those struggling to maintain their sanity. When the journey turns perilous, the storyteller becomes a guide, helping the men make sense of a life that may soon end.

324 pages, Paperback

First published July 6, 2013

Reviews

[Chris Campanioni · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much complexity packed into such a simple book. Simple, of course, is an understatement--or rather, an ironic one. Carlos Aleman seems to make it appear SIMPLE, at least; the way he can pack so many weighty and provocative issues and subjects into a novel which you can read in a week, probably less, due to the wonderful pacing and beautiful prose.

In doing so, Aleman has achieved a surprising, heartfelt, emotional literary debut. There were rare times in which I felt the writing was either too heavy-handed or, more often, too expository, but the clever narrative stitching, the wonderful, tightly-drawn characters, the pertinent subject matter (ranging from spiritual and religious concerns to meditations on art, from communication in the digital age to Latino self-prejudice and language, from turmoil in the Middle East to political persecution in Cuba ...), the way that the story made me laugh and cry nearly simultaneously, the way that a romance novel and a bildungsroman masterfully encase all of it ... make Happy That It's Not True a book I felt the urge to re-read the moment I finished the last line, and moreover, make me recommend this book to YOU.

[Jeanenne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The storyteller’s tale in Happy That It's Not True explores the shadow side of life through its characters. The characters struggle with challenges that would singly destroy the best of us. The characters in the book struggle to bear the weight of multiple challenges including PTSD and domestic abuse, just to name two. However this heaviness is lightened by the hopes, dreams and love that the characters also carry around with them. Instead of creating characters about whom we simply read, Carlos Aleman weaves together a story with characters that we feel something about – sympathy and empathy. Aleman is able to paint rich inner worlds through which we experience the actions more vividly. They are at once victims of their circumstances while also being survivors clinging to threads of hope and, as a reader, one feels their despair while clinging to their hope.

I vicariously experienced it so much so, that once I finished the book, I WAS “happy that it’s not true.” It is a sentiment that I feel will be shared by all who read it.

[Brittany Sanford · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Happy That It’s Not True” is masterfully written. The book took me hostage with words painting scenes in my mind and with characters whose presence still linger. I was intrigued from the beginning to the end of the story. I had emotional and physical reactions as I read. It had me laughing, crying, clapping, and stomping my feet in anger.

A good book not only entertains, it leaves something imprinted on the reader. “Happy That It’s Not True” has imprinted on me.

This is on my list of favorites and I definitely recommend it.

[Rachel]

Very interesting story that captured my attention.