Hector and the search for happiness

[electronic resource] :, 165 pages

English language

Published Jan. 1, 2010 by Penguin Group USA.

ISBN:: 978-1-101-45867-9
OCLC Number:: 668230161

(1 review)

Hector is an excellent psychiatrist. He's very good at treating patients who are ill, but more and more; his patients are people he can't treat. They have no serious problems -- they're simply deeply dissatisfied with their lives. Hector can't do much for these people, and it's beginning to depress him. So when a patient tells him he looks in need of a holiday, Hector decides to set off on a trip around the world to try to find the key to happiness. Along the way, Hector keeps a list of observations about the people he meets and learns a great deal about what true contentment is all about. His journey into the soul is entertaining, empowering and often funny -- as winning in its optimism as it is powerful in its simplicity.

5 editions

crabbygirl reviewed Hector and the Search for Happiness by François Lelord

Review of 'Hector and the Search for Happiness' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

reminiscent of The Alchemist, with it's journey and constant meditation, this is another simple parable about one man's life that is supposed to make you reflect on your own. in this case, the meditations are on happiness. and yes, I did reflect on these simple truths. but I confess to being even more interested in the real story between the lines. hector meets a high class prostitute in Hong Kong and falls in love with her, even to the point of wishing it was possible to love 2 women at once (he has a steady companion back home already; in fact he 'chooses' to be with her by the end of the parable and she, feeling this steady love, dedicates more of her time to be with him).
meanwhile, in Lelord's real life, he married a Vietnamese woman and they live in Thailand - both hotbeds for sex tourism. does …

reminiscent of The Alchemist, with it's journey and constant meditation, this is another simple parable about one man's life that is supposed to make you reflect on your own. in this case, the meditations are on happiness. and yes, I did reflect on these simple truths. but I confess to being even more interested in the real story between the lines. hector meets a high class prostitute in Hong Kong and falls in love with her, even to the point of wishing it was possible to love 2 women at once (he has a steady companion back home already; in fact he 'chooses' to be with her by the end of the parable and she, feeling this steady love, dedicates more of her time to be with him).
meanwhile, in Lelord's real life, he married a Vietnamese woman and they live in Thailand - both hotbeds for sex tourism. does this fact imply life is not as simple as this parable? perhaps simply choosing and loving someone doesn't make them a better fit for you? or maybe, potential wives don't WANT to read about their mate visiting a prostitute and falling in love so quickly with their beauty, or that one night with such a woman could so easily displace their feelings.

Subjects

Travel
Psychiatrists
Happiness
Fiction