The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley by Courtney Walsh

 So...we are now in a new Ward, the Stonebridge Ward, where I thought we'd meet lots of like-minded folks. They look like us--well-dressed and educated--older--drive SUV's and live in our neighborhood...have grandkids...etc., etc., so I was excited to learn they have an active book club. I read online that they are reading The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley so I ordered it to be prepared to enjoy a good discussion, I liked the title and it sounded light and fun.

Well...like so many of the rom-coms I've been exposed to lately, it's frustrating to read. Every point is repeated ad nauseum. I almost tossed it after the third page; a young woman trying to be tragically funny. Example after example of her runner-up life, what a loser she is, on and on and on... But, I had just returned from a great trip to Indiana to see the Stevenson's, and I was nursing a bad cold and needed to stay in bed, so I stuck with it. It was the perfect sick in bed read.

It got slightly better as the main character, a seemingly autistic woman with no social skills, gradually emerges and tries to be happier. She is encouraged along the way by a loving elderly man, a spunky neighbor who takes her to yoga, and of course, a handsome love-interest. They gradually all help her out of her very hard shell. 

Along the way there are some good messages for recluses. I liked that she found friendship in unexpected places and that she was open to them. The bad message, though, I think is that the handsome professor would have that kind of patience... should one expect a prince charming? I don't think so. Yet there was enough exploration of Isadora's feelings and her realization that "happiness is a choice" is a good message. Some of the other hints at happiness were also good --exercise regularly, get out in nature, and confront what's making you unhappy. It was kind of a self-help manual within a story. 

I'll be interested in what the ladies in our ward have to say about this one and wonder who suggested it...