Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson

Summary: 

For fans of David Sedaris, Tina Fey, and Mindy Kaling-the new book from Jenny Lawson, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller LET'S PRETEND THIS NEVER HAPPENED...

In LET'S PRETEND THIS NEVER HAPPENED, Jenny Lawson baffled readers with stories about growing up the daughter of a taxidermist. In her new book, FURIOUSLY HAPPY, Jenny explores her lifelong battle with mental illness. A hysterical, ridiculous book about crippling depression and anxiety? That sounds like a terrible idea. And terrible ideas are what Jenny does best.

According to Jenny: "Some people might think that being 'furiously happy' is just an excuse to be stupid and irresponsible and invite a herd of kangaroos over to your house without telling your husband first because you suspect he would say no since he's never particularly liked kangaroos. And that would be ridiculous because no one would invite a herd of kangaroos into their house. Two is the limit. I speak from personal experience. My husband says that none is the new limit. I say he should have been clearer about that before I rented all those kangaroos."

"Most of my favorite people are dangerously fucked-up but you'd never guess because we've learned to bare it so honestly that it becomes the new normal. Like John Hughes wrote in The Breakfast Club, 'We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it.' Except go back and cross out the word 'hiding.'"

Jenny's first book, LET'S PRETEND THIS NEVER HAPPENED, was ostensibly about family, but deep down it was about celebrating your own weirdness. FURIOUSLY HAPPY is a book about mental illness, but under the surface it's about embracing joy in fantastic and outrageous ways-and who doesn't need a bit more of that?

Release Date: September 22, 2015

Age Group: Adult

Source: Purchased

Reviewed By: Kelli

Review:

I read and loved Let's Pretend This Never Happened (read my review here), so I knew that I would really enjoy Furiously Happy.  However, I didn't expect this book to touch my heart the way that it did. 

Jenny Lawson is a well-recognized advocate for breaking the stimga surrounding mental illness.  She opens up about her own struggles in Furiously Happy, and her transparency made me love her even more.  There were so many aspects of her feelings and life that I identified with, and I got a lot of peace in knowing that I wasn't alone.  

I also loved reading about how Jenny copes with her symptoms.  For example, Jenny has several sleep disorders which cause severe insomnia.  Instead of laying in bed fretting about not sleeping, she has cat rodeos in her kitchen at 3:00 am.  She straps her smaller taxidermied animals onto her cats and has them race to see which cat can keep the animal on their back the longest.  This scene was one of my favorites in the book and one that I keep coming back to when I struggle with insomnia. 

One might think that this book is heavy or depressing.  It's the complete opposite.  Jenny strikes the perfect balance between intense and light hearted emotion.  A chapter about her worst struggles is followed by a short chapter about her most recent fight with her husband Victor (these fights are always hilarious, by the way).  

At its heart, Furiously Happy is about making the best life out of your particular circumstances, whatever they may be.  It made me smile, cry, and left me with a feeling of intense hope.  Jenny's blog is a place where people can come together, share their struggles with mental illness, and feel accepted no matter what.  Furiously Happy expounds on this feeling of community and unconditional acceptance.  Even though I was reading this book in my own home, completely alone, I felt surrounded by the experience of all of those who have gone before me, and those going through a hard time with me right now.  And that's an incredible feeling...one that is rarely found in a book.  I can't say enough good things about Furiously Happy.  I highly recommend it!