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The Pursuit Of Happiness [Paperback]

Douglas Kennedy (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
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Book Description

Publication Date: 5 Sep 2002

The critically acclaimed bestseller from the number one bestselling author of The Moment and A Special Relationship. A powerful romantic novel set in the tumultuous world of post-war America.

New York, 1945 - Sara Smythe, a young, beautiful and intelligent woman, ready to make her own way in the big city, attends her brother's Thanksgiving Eve party. As the party gets into full swing, in walks Jack Malone, a US Army journalist back from a defeated Germany and a man unlike any Sara has ever met before - one who is destined to change Sara's future forever.

But finding love isn't the same as finding happiness - as Sara and Jack soon find out. In post-war America chance meetings aren't always as they seem, and people's choices can often have profound repercussions. Sara and Jack find they are subject to forces beyond their control and that their destinies are formed by more than just circumstance. In this world of intrigue and emotional conflict, Sara must fight to survive - against Jack, as much as for him.

In this mesmerising tale of longing and betrayal, The Pursuit of Happiness is a great tragic love story; a tale of divided loyalties, decisive moral choices, and the random workings of destiny.

(20011227)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 656 pages
  • Publisher: Arrow (5 Sep 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0099415372
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099415374
  • Product Dimensions: 13 x 4 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 15,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Amazon Review

The Pursuit of Happiness opens with a funeral scene, swiftly setting the tone for this tragic love story-cum-damning indictment of the McCarthy witch hunts of the 1940s and 50s. Douglas Kennedy's 500-page epic delivers a consummate yet intimate look at post-war New York, gripped by the fear of the enemy within and purging the country of Communists, told through the story of Sara Smythe, a small-c conservative striving to make sense of her own place in the world. Sara's story unfolds as Kate, the daughter of the recently deceased Dorothy Malone, reads a manuscript handed to her by an elusive woman who appears at her mother's graveside.

This, Sara's account, begins 55 years earlier at a Manhattan party hosted by her brother Eric, a successful gag writer on the hugely successful Marty Manning Show. Searching the room aimlessly, her gaze locks with that of Jack Malone and for the next 24 hours the pair are inseparable. Jack must return to Europe but not before securing Sara's promise that she will be there on the dock in nine months time. However, it is another five years before the pair reunite as divided loyalties, duty and fate combine to thwart them. As the years pass, Kennedy treats us to an urbane look at Manhattan life: from Duke Ellington to highballs to the Stork Club; from Thomas E. Dewey to Pearl Buck to Rita Hayworth, the prose is enlivened by contemporary allusions to every facet of city life. As Sara, Eric and Jack's lives converge, though, the narrative's themes of betrayal and disloyalty on a personal and national level (echoing those of McCarthy himself) collide.

Kennedy's final damning moral is that chance only plays a small part in how our lives turn out--it is the choices we make subsequently that determine our destinies. The Pursuit of Happiness is therefore not a comforting read but it is ultimately affirming if you see that each step counts and the pursuit is everything. --Nicola Perry --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"This is the novel against which the rest of the year's output demands to be judged" (Express on Sunday )

"Kennedy cannot help but write grippingly, and he weaves threads of love and betrayal into a thrillingly masterful ending" (Observer )

"This superb story of divided loyalties and personal tragedy will heave you pinned to your seat" (Woman & Home )

"Curl up and enjoy" (Spectator )

"A triumph" (Mail on Sunday )
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Evocative, Powerful, Romantic,Tragic 13 Jun 2005
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
At first glance I didn't think that I was going to enjoy this book. I was wrong to judge a book by it's cover! I thought the writer's ability to write from a woman's perspective was truely incredible.

Douglas Kennedy's ability to show Sara's life and the sheer passion of her relationship with Jack Malone, the tragedy of losing her beloved brother, her mish mash marriage to George and his repulsive family and then emotional rollercoaster that was her life from there,made this book so hard to put down even without the cliched happy ever after ending. In fact, I'm still trying to catch up on the sleep I've missed reading til all hours of the morning.

Sara's thoughts, feelings and actions portray a useful lesson in forgiveness and I urge anyone who finds it hard to forgive to give this book a chance.It offers some useful philosophy on this subject!

The characters are all very believable and totally absorbing. The plotlines interweave each other and show what life was like for some in post war America.

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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars I thought I'd read good books before... 20 Oct 2003
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Fantastic.. Attracted at first by the beautiful cover. Once into the main story, I couldnt put the book down. This is the first book that has made me late for work because I was up so late reading it! The twists came at the end of chapters, so that I just couldn't leave the next chapter unread. One of the twists had me blinking at the page in disbelief at the revelation before me. Have subsequently purchased a number of Douglas Kennedy books on the strength of this read.
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32 of 33 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling read! 6 Feb 2003
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I bought this book on the strength of its cover (I liked the shade of blue!!!), and it was one of my better impulse buys!
It's a totally compelling story. The pages almost turn themselves, and it's almost impossible to put down once you start!
The plot twists and turns, and takes you to places where you imagine there is no way out, but Kennedy's rollercoaster of a book is unpredictable, exciting, and manages to lift the characters out of situations that seem impossible.
Towards the end of the book, you find yourself thinking 'how much more can this woman take?', thoughts echoed by Sara herself, but her life is portrayed with sensitivity, humour, and a wonderful kind of stoicism that reminds you of the period of history in which the book is set.
Buy the book now!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read but too long!
I enjoyed the book overall. The love affair was gripping and I found the characters and the historical background interesting. Read more
Published 3 days ago by C. Thomas
5.0 out of 5 stars The most amazing book!
I've read this book before but lost my copy so brought it again off here and re read it. It really is the most wonderful story and Douglas Kennedy is a master of making you feel... Read more
Published 6 days ago by Grace
5.0 out of 5 stars long
A bit longer than it need be but it kept me engrossed for all of the book.Makes me want to visit New York to see the places described.
Published 1 month ago by oldernwiser
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!
Beautifully written. Intriguing from the first page to the last. Great "backdrop" of NYC & McCarthy era. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Neil
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Douglas Kennedy book.
I loved this book. I have read it twice and will probably read it again. It has great characters and a brilliant story.
Published 2 months ago by MRS M NEWELL
4.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing level of medical knowledge otherwise a good read
The poor medical knowledge was very irritating, could I therefore trust other facts? otherwise an engrossing book, well worth reading.
Published 4 months ago by Sandy
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
This is the second book I have read by Douglas Kennedy and it proved just as thought provoking and absorbing as my first read "The Moment". Read more
Published 5 months ago by C. J. Campbell
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful and spell-binding book
This book takes its time introducing us to the characters - the pace is leisurely and gentle. As the stories unfold, I was captured by the people and the complexity of their... Read more
Published 7 months ago by H. Richards
4.0 out of 5 stars It made me happy
Beautifully written, intricate tale of the story of two women and how their lives connect. Significant elements of history are cleverly woven into the story which twists and turns. Read more
Published 8 months ago by MHR
5.0 out of 5 stars So emotionally intense it's quite cathartic
I admit it's years since I read this book but I remember it being a great read, a roller-coaster ride of emotions, leaving me feeling quite exhausted. Read more
Published 12 months ago by J Hutch
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