Rating: 
Summary: The Giant Sucking Sound Didn't Come From Mexico...
Review: That giant sucking sound Ross Perot referred to as coming from Mexico is actually at your neighborhood bookstore! Just buy Anna's new book and you'll hear a whooosh! as money flies into the pockets of people who are really enjoying life -- on your dime.
Hah! Here's my summary review:
- Better photos in Victoria's Secret (and it's free).
- More serenity from raking my 6 inch square zen garden.
- Better life lessons from "The Weakest Link"
- Not as compelling as "Goodnight Moon"
If you must -- read it at the bookstore and use a buck or two on 10-10-220 to phone a friend and warn them.
Rating:
Summary: Quindlen Is Just Another Pulp Fiction Would-be Philosopher
Review: Anna Quindlen is certainly to be applauded for having pulled off this new century's greatest hustle with her book, "How to Live Every Day Without Even Knowing What My Self Is About ... Except, As A Giant Zit On God's Face!" Please indulge this reviewer's corruption of the actual Quindlen book title, "A Short Guide To A Happy Life." How many more nice little wanderings through no where must this planet's anthology of (clinking, clanking, collateral collection of coliginous) "touch-me-feely-freely-please-pay-cash-for-my-book-today" pseudo-author-philosophers smash down our hungry-for-a-read throats? I say, "No more, please!" From Socrates and his ilk to Kierkegaard (sic) and his ilk (sick)...have these brave souls not already put to rest the time tested questions (without any real answers): "Who am I?" (what does it matter: you're just future worm food anyway!), "What am I?" (ditto), "Where did I come from?" (worm food), "Is there a God?" (yes, the worms...get it?), "Does the soul join back with God or ever become harmonious with the Body?" (yes, during sex ... with anyone or anything, it would seem by today's standards...). If the reader is depressed about his or her paradigm of life ("My job sucks, my spouse sucks, my kids suck, I suck, my boss sucks..." ad infinitum -- sanctum?), then he/she should merely, "Wake up to a reality check, Baby!" It just doesn't matter! If you don't already understand the principles of life followed by death, then you are already DEAD! But, Quindlen's is a warm and soft navel read, to be sure. I can say that with some wine and soft music on a dark and stormy night ... I might enjoy it. It muses along the traverses of all humans' quests for something called "happiness, joy, a piece of the action..."; but it is really just another literature archetype describing, beautifully, those little vicissitudes of life -- the ups and downs we must all face daily. Nothing more. Had I.Q. points suddenly dropped throughout the Earth much before Anna's book was published? No. Have I.Q. points improved? Possibly. All reading is better than no reading for enhancing a human's intelligence (versus watching only television or checking out your navel once again). The price of the book for its few dozen pages of pseudo-mystical verbiage is actually reasonable. Did I pay for it? Yes. Did I read it? Yes. Do I suggest it on your bookshelf? Yes ... if you have an empty slot on a shelf for a book that exactly allows for the width and depth of Ms. Quindlen's, and provided that there is just dust collecting otherwise. Save some dusting time and elbow grease and replace the dust with her book ... that's what I did with my copy.
Rating: 
Summary: Short and Sweet
Review: Sometimes the best things really do come in small packages. It is precisely because of the length that Anna Quindlen's little book was just what I needed. I think this will make a wonderful gift to anyone who is in the hospital, recovering from a traumatic event, or simply taking time to reflect on what's most important in life. It's not just about getting a life, but recognizing how intensely precious the life you have really is. You never know how much the things and people you take for granted are worth until they're gone. Why wait?
Rating:
Summary: Good Feelings
Review: This book does give you a good feeling while you are reading it, as another reader suggests the feeling is much like the feeling I got reading An Encounter With A Prophet; however the book is entirely too short. Seems like the author started a book then decided differently and some one decided to send the unfinished work to a publisher
Rating: 
Summary: Short It Is.
Review: It gives you a good feeling when you are reading it (Concentrated word-by-word reading shouldn't take more than 15 Minutes). But the text doesn't have enough emotions to pull you to read it again and again.
Rating: 
Summary: not worth the money
Review: The first thing I'd like to say about this little book, is that I made the mistake of buying it from a local bookstore & didn't bother to give it a second look, before heading to the cashiers. When I got home & finished the book in 10 minutes (I'm not kidding), I realised how much money I had spent & thought it was such a waste. As many other readers, I was led to buy this book because of Anna Quindlen's name. I enjoy her columns, read them through the internet regurarly, & I have quite liked her novels, too. That is why I cannot understand what led her to write the content for a greeting card (because that's what this is) & sell it as a book. Nothing you'll read in this booklet is original. Nothing is "life changing" as many reviewers have incredibly said. Nothing is stuff you haven't heard before, many many times that is. On talk shows, during conversations with friends, or simply through common sense. Not that what Quindlen writes is untrue. On the contrary. It's just that I suspect there's so much more she could have said, to justify the title "a short guide to a happy life". In the end, Anna Quindlen is a good & intelligent writer, & it's a shame she sold herself short by publishing this. Many readers, like me, bought this book expecting much much more from her. And it's kind of sad when writers you admire disappoint you. A small note: I quickly looked through the comments other readers made, here on amazon. I was amazed by somebody who wrote that this book is "a fix of optimism & positivity". As if we're talking about alcohol or coffee. Books & ideas are not "fixes" of anything. But then, how stupid of me to be amazed. I guess there are millions of people out there who turn to self help books to help them change, to help them think & understand what is going wrong with their lives. If you want my advice (which surprisingly coincides with Quindlen's!), forget this type of book, & get a life!
Rating:
Summary: Pause at the photos, once, twice,.....
Review: Don't read this book to gain an insight into leading a meaningful life. Read it when you need to catch a breather between chores and don't be surprised if the wonderful black and white pictures have you smiling to yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Should be titled "Short Guide to a Quick Buck"
Review: This is the ultimate case of cashing in on a name. It is nothing more than a long greeting card using hackneyed quotes and second rate photos. Hallmark could put it out for $2.98. So unoriginal it was laughable. Might be a good read for a ten year old. But maybe not.
Rating:
Summary: Good, But where is the rest of it????
Review: I honestly read this book in 10 minutes. It was the quickest, book I've read in years... It teaches us all about life's important lessons, and things we should hold dear. There was one problem. It was toooo short...
Rating:
Summary: Moments
Review: Life is made of moments....Read this book, and savor the moments of life, the seconds of experience that let you feel the taste of Life.... It's a book about how to experience a happy life.
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