The Happiness Code

by Amy Herrick

Pinky, who longs for a second child, and Arthur, who believes the world to be too troubled to justify more people, struggle for their respective interpretations of happiness before an unexpected baby comes into, and disappears from, their lives. 15,000 first printing.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published March 31, 2003

About the author

Amy grew up in Queens, New York, in a garden apartment community loaded with other kids and plenty of trees to climb and places to run around in. When she wasn’t climbing and running and hanging upside down from the monkey bars, she had her head in a book. She started writing stories of her own early in her teen years and hasn’t stopped since. She went to school at SUNY Binghamton and, later, the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. During these years she studied creative writing, as well as many other things. She found herself becoming more and more interested in science, nature studies, and philosophy. Elements of these show up in her writing all the time.
At Iowa she was given the opportunity to teach and she found it exhilarating. Upon her return to New York, she finished a degree in teaching and set forth to make her fortune.
Eventually, she settled down in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, where she has lived for over thirty years, raising two sons, teaching pre-K, grade school, and college, slowly writing books, and keeping company with her tenant lawyer husband. She lives right down the block from Prospect Park where she has had many great adventures, some of which show up in her stories.
She is doing all she can to reduce her carbon footprint and hopes you are, too.

Reviews

[Wila · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 15 year old daughter introduced me to this book (found in the Young Adult section of my library). What a charming read. I devoured this book in one night and was blown away by the ending.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost a 5 star book -- lovely and strange little story. I really enjoyed this one.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. Interesting idea, interesting enough plot to want to keep going, but I majorly scanned parts of it. I didn't enjoy following the cats point of view and I felt even the boy's story was too much. I enjoyed the adult characters.

[M. Gary Berg · Rating 2 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️ This book 📕 was the 1st in a long time that I was just glad to finish, the story basically had very little in common with title, I would not recommend this book 📖 to anybody 🤭

[Patricia Geller · Rating 3 out of 5]

A silly book.

[Bethypage42 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun read. The characters are lovable, but the plot is quick paced and innovative so it's not an emotional read.

I feel like any plot reveal is a spoiler, so I'm struggling...this book is a pleasure for its unique voice. I hate to apply the usual cliches like "rollicking good time" but this book is a rollercoaster of unusual circumstances and strange occurances set as a backdrop for a normal family, resulting in strange feelings of vertigo for the reader. Kinda like Carl Hiassen meets the Brady Bunch.

The ending does get a little out of the realm of possibility, but the whole premise is extreme. I think the author deserves a little lee-way, considering her difficult task. This is complicated story only imaginable in our strange times.

[Ali O'Hara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was tempted to go with 5 stars for this book, so consider this at least 4.5. I'm not quite sure what makes a book 5 stars for me, so I had to go a little lower.

This book is a fun, sweet, strange read. I especially loved the (few) parts from the cat's perspective. Its not really a book about animals though. Oh and the beginning is all about babies and wanting a baby and I thought "oh dear, how did *I* pick up this book?" but whew, it wasn't really like that although it IS about a baby, sort of. Sweet, fun, strange. Really. You should read it.

[Bobbie N · Rating 5 out of 5]

SUMMARY: A scientist has discovered a gene that may hold the secret of happiness. One of his colleagues implants it into the child she is carrying, and subsequent events bring the baby into the lives of an ordinary family, who discover that the downside of his happiness is his inability to feel suffering or pain. COMMENTS: A wonderful story about love and destiny, science and mystery, that explores the question of whether we’re meant to be happy or if happiness is meant to be a now-and-then occurrence in our lives.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book confused me. An unhappy
man and his wife live with their
young son. The wife wants another
child. The man refuses to allow
the wife to have another child,
but he has a child with his
research co-worker. The baby is
given a happiness gene. The baby
never cries, not even when he
is severely cut or stung by a wasp.
But what is this story about? What
was the author trying to say?
And what did the ending mean?
I have no idea.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirky, fun, thought-provoking. The voice sort of made me feel like I was reading a book written by one of my favourite bloggers. Pinky and Arthur are such a great pairing - the redheaded spitfire and the gloomy scientist - and Teddy is a refreshingly non-cutesy child, with his serious singlemindedness and irascibility. Some good questions about the nature - and desirability - of happiness, as an ephemeral state, an unattainable fiction, or a genetically assured certainty.

[Mary Fahnlander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to think who wouldn't like this book, since it has something for everyone--romance, mystery, science, great characters all looking for happiness. See for yourself who finds it. This book is refreshingly different yet very engaging.

[Lauren Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting but the overall message/ending was really confusing. I think the author wanted to leave a bit of a cliffhanger or leave the ending up to the reader's interpretation. That or the ending was supposed to be really intense and I just missed it entirely.

[michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book read great. Easy to visualize what the author intended you to see, but hard to swallow, even for fiction.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh, this book had potential...and I ended up very disappointed in the end. Brave New Worldish feeling...great concept that wasn't followed through. Meh.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read for anyone into science/genetics

[Elissa]

I like her writing style a lot. This is an easy read

[Sharla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my choice for a long, no-kids weekend at the lake. I loved it! Amy Herrick is a good writer, and this was a very entertaining, unusual story!

[H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both of Amy Herrick's books have been full of quirky people whose world I thoroughly enjoyed entering. I hope she keeps writing.

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my 124th book of 2011. As per my routine I randomly chose it from my piles. I think "my code" is unique but hey it makes me happy! T

[Debbie]

I did not like it at all. It had a good theme, but poorly executed

[Sheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

You've seen the summary and plot-line of the book in other reviews, so I won't rehash. I will tell you, though, what makes this book a five-star read for me is the question that the book poses -- and ultimately answers. Is all-encompassing happiness truly that desirable? I don't want to spoil the plot points that spell out the answer (though it's never shoved down your throat), but I think we all know the answer anyway. Pain and suffering may very well be necessary in order to exist.

This was an easy book to read, but a hard one to forget. I am a speed reader, and rarely remember fine points, or even the titles of some of the books I have read. But this one ... this one sticks in my mind, and comes up at odd times. I challenge you to read "The Happiness Code" and not do the same.