Reporter Weiner (aptly pronounced “whiner”), having amassed a collection of self-help books in pursuit of his own happiness, decides to visit the happiest places of the world in order to see if he can find some clues for success. The resulting book is part travel memoir, part occasional forays into happiness research, and part observations and sweeping conclusions about entire cultures and societies. I found the book a little too glib and Weiner’s sense of humor was a bit grating; the characters he met were also sometimes presented as cultural stereotypes, which was off-putting. Nevertheless the writing style was smooth and easy and I made it through the book without too much trouble. I did like the detailed portraits painted of each country; as an NPR reporter, Weiner definitely knew how to create a vivid descriptive image.