Book Review: Happiness Falls

I read Happiness Falls after it was recommended to me. I listened to it on Spotify and enjoyed the narration and ease of listening to an audiobook. This version is quite engaging and well done. 

Happiness Falls, written by Angie Kim and published in August 2023, takes place near Great Falls, Virginia. There's been a lot of excitement about the book, which is a bestseller, and after reading it, I can understand why. This book is an incredible story told well; I liked it. 

The character, Mia Parkson, narrates Happiness Falls. Her perspective details the events that take place over a couple of days as she, alongside her family, navigates the crisis of searching for her missing father during the pandemic. Mia engages the reader as a narrator by tactfully weaving together the uniqueness of her experiences to produce a narrative perspective that envelopes the reader in her world. Despite having a central and critical plot that, as a reader, one deeply cares about, the story artfully touches on a variety of topics that are detailed and communicated so impactfully that they awaken a strong sense of empathy for the experiences the reader might not be able to relate to directly. 

Among several important themes in the story, Happiness Falls asserts that the ability to utilize verbal communication in a dominant language has little bearing on an individual's intelligence. Recognizing the capabilities of individuals who struggle to communicate in English is critical and necessary to understanding the world around us. The story also indicates that establishing means of communication when there is difficulty is not solely the responsibility of the individual who struggles to express themselves; all effective human communication requires a mutual effort to listen and understand; this is integral to the human experience.  

With Happiness Fall's thought-provoking theme of verbal communication and intelligence correlations, this story brought to mind the history of the Native American community in the United States. As a tribal citizen, I've long heard stories of the terror inflicted upon children who spoke their Native language in Indian Boarding schools. Of young Natives who were punished, many of whom also died, for not assimilating, for not communicating in the way dominant culture dictated was appropriate. I believe these stories speak to the harm inflicted on communities and individuals by overzealous insistencies on being understood without ever stretching forth an effort to understand. This perspective has wreaked havoc upon vulnerable populations and individuals throughout history. Happiness Falls thoughtfully reminds us of this. 

Great Falls National Park