A Kim's HAPPINESS FALLS-Mystery, Family Drama and Psychological Karma

Angie Kim's multilayered, complex novel is a fascinating, how to put down read. Kim's literary writing is innovative and captivating.  She captures the emotional roller coaster ride of Mia, a precocious, polymath  college student.  Mia is raised by bi-racial parents with her twin brother, John, and 14 year old brother, Eugene. Eugene was born with severe disabilities; diagnosed with autism and Angelman syndrome; a severe development disorder. He's unable to verbalize and lacks muscular control.  Mia and John are home from college during Covid when Eugene returns alone from an outing with their dad, extremely agitated and caked in blood.  It's shocking that Eugene returned by himself. Their father was Eugene's F/T caregiver and would never allow him to venture alone. Thus begins the turbulent mystery into the dad's  disappearance. We traverse through a duplicitous police investigation through Mia's whip-smart mind  Mia is bent on protecting her brother and family.  Mia's endless questioning and explanations are a jolting, mind altering undertaking. The pandemic plays a major part in this disjointed time when everyone was quarantined and isolated.  Mia's family becomes a fortress unto itself.  Eugene becomes a prime suspect in his dad's disappearance. The attorney representing Eugene is devoted to defending children with special needs,  Mistrust and miscommunication are the underlying thrust of this entrancing novel.  It's disheartening to realize how difficult it is to truly understand another person and yet, how essential it is to make an effort to broker understanding.  Mia's relentless quest to unravel her father's disappearance breaks into his cell phone. "I was so eager to unlock Dad's phone?...Because, at the end of the day, I believed him mostly, but not fully. And, I didn't fully trust Mom and John, either.  And wasn't that-almost-but-not-quite-certain level of faith and trust, the need for eternal verification and objective proof..."  Mia's cynicism wasn't without satirical humor. "I thought how sad it must be to be a lawyer, to see everything as potentially incriminating." As Mia and her family examine what may have taken place, they uncover an entryway into Eugene's consciousness. This was a seismic shift into his world and his family's. Shannon, Eugene's attorney tells the court, "Eugene Parkson is like any other person who needs an extra step to help their thoughts be understood by others." The novel also provides advice and metrics for establishing happiness by starting with a reasonably low bar. "We need to learn how to want what we have NOT to  have what we want in order to get steady and stable Happiness." HAPPINESS FALLS is a dazzling delve into a dizzying array of convictions ranging from absolute to skeptical.  There's little doubt as to the multitude of gifts befallen Kim's page turning novel. Kim instructs us, "Our brains are hardwired to want resolution." Although, she also advises "Don't overthink it."     

BEING HENRY-The Fonz a.k.a. Henry Winkler Looks Back with Fondness and Gratitude

There are plenty of happy days in the life of 79 years young, Henry Winkler who first garnered fame as the Fonz on the ABC hit sitcom HAPPY DAYS.  Winkler's bio is an enjoyable, fast read. At the end he writes, "I have gratitude for everything. I love being on the earth. I love everything."  Despite sounding saccharine, Winkler's memoir is a candid and joyous journey filled with happiness, set-backs and an irrepressible spirit that feels genuine. There's much Winkler has to be thankful for, especially his wife of more than 40 years, three children, five grandchildren and a bevy of beloved dogs. Childhood growing up as the only son of German born immigrants wasn't pleasurable due to cold, dismissive parents and dyslexia making academics arduous.  Despite his dyslexia, Winkler finished college and Yale's Drama School. In addition to his long career in front of the camera, he's directed, produced and written a score of children's books about a child dealing with dyslexia. Winkler is up front about the ongoing difficulties dyslexia imposes in his career from script readings to learning lines. This isn't amounting to a hard knock life, but it was excruciating for him after being typecast making getting cast difficult.  "I was saddened that the world could only see me as the Fonz. But, I never lost sight of what the character gave me, a roof over my head, food on the table, my children's education."  He nabbed the role as Fonzie, his first gig soon after  he arrived in LA (while coachsurfing) and pinching pennies.  Winkler touts relying on one's intuition. "Trust your tummy, not your head.  Your head only knows some things; your tummy knows everything, if you just listen."  More importantly, he emphasized giving respect to the cast, crew and everyone without sounding holier-than-thou. Winkler came across not only exemplary, but as someone you'd be fortunate to know.  An aspect Winkler weighs in on too heavily is psychotherapy.  He proselytized this as a panacea for getting in touch with one's emotions.  "I slowly realized there was still a lot of little boy in me, desperately trying to make everyone in the world love me, because my parents didn't seem to. The little boy who knew less than everyone else."  Winkler was aware he wasn't emotionally there for his wife as needed. He credits therapy for enlightening him.  "After almost forty years together, something in me still couldn't let her in, and this was causing intense pain to both of us."  He felt he wasn't advocating for his views at work. "I was unable, again physically unable to hold up my side of any argument; I would just cave, then keep quiet and build a thunderhead of resentment."  The long career Winkler has maintained in the entertainment industry is testament to his tenacity.  "This Emmy {for BARRY} was a validation, not only of the kind of work I could do, but of the kind of work I could do at 70. Reading about Winkler's life was engrossing and a master class in acting.  I took away winning attitudes from Winkler.  Still, it's his decency in a business known more for its sleaziness that resonated. "The cornerstone of my existence: never finish a negative sentence...Release the negative thought before you put a period on the end of it...get it out of your brain by replacing it with a positive.  What kind of positive? What I always say in my talks is that it is a moist chocolate Bundt cake with soft chocolate chips. No frosting."  And as Fonzie, "AAAYYY! I don't wanna see where I've been. I wanna see how cool I look getting there!"