Go to main contentsGo to search barGo to main menu
Tuesday, July 15, 2025 at 1:35 PM

“Happiness for Beginners” by Katherine Center

“Happiness for Beginners” by Katherine Center

The book is always better than the movie. We have all read and loved a book, and when it is made into a movie or show, we get excited – but we may also remain very cautious because we know how this often turns out. There are great examples of screen adaptations being different from the books they are based on, but still excellent, and many terrible ones. 

This week’s book is “Happiness for Beginners” by Katherine Center, and it also happens to be a new movie streaming on Netflix. The novel is a fun and fast-paced romantic comedy about Helen Carpenter, who can't seem to bounce back from the last year or six of her life. Newly divorced at thirty-two, she's unsure if she can ever put her mess of a life back together. She decides that a shake-up is in order and signs up for a three-week wilderness survival course in Wyoming. She hopes this adventure will be just what she needs to reset her life. It is a total disaster. A few of the things Helen has to deal with on her big adventure are blisters, a summer blizzard, rutting elk, and a pack of sorority girls.

Add to the list that her annoying younger brother’s even more annoying best friend, Jake, is also “coincidentally" on the same trip, and Helen isn’t sure she can take anymore. But, as it often does in these stories, Helen discovers that sometimes we have to be broken all the way down before we can be put back together, and getting lost is sometimes the only way to be truly found. In short, I loved this book.

The movie? Well. Except for the name being the same and the very general idea of the story being the same, it was almost nothing like the book. It was unbelievable how many things they changed. I know this would bother some readers, but hear me out. The movie is funny, cute, and perfect for a rainy Sunday afternoon. I am no movie director, but as a “consumer of stories," I understand why things are tweaked or changed when translating a book into a movie. Time doesn’t always allow for every single plot point to be addressed. Some great stuff in a book might make a movie or show drag. Budgets may not allow certain book aspects to make it into the film. There are so many factors involved, and at the end of the day, if people watch the movie on Netflix and think it's cute, they might be more likely to go pick up the book and see if there is truth to the old “the book is always better" adage.  These movies make readers, and that's enough to make me happy.

Check out “Happiness for Beginners” in book form and on Netflix, then come tell me which you liked better over on Instagram @allison.the.reader, where I am reading and rambling every day of the week.

Allison Diegel is the Executive Chaos Coordinator at the Diegel Home for Wayward Girls and Their Many Pets here in her hometown of Fallon. She has been reading since before she could talk, and now she likes doing lots of both.


Share
Rate

Comment

Comments

COMMENTS
Comment author: Mike HinzComment text: I knew Sam as a member of our church growing up. He always had a warm smile, a kind word, and a great sense of humor! He will be great missed!Comment publication date: 7/2/25, 11:57 AMComment source: Obituary -- Samuel Bruce WickizerComment author: Mike HinzComment text: Great teacher, great coach, but even a better person!!! Rest in peace Mr. BeachComment publication date: 7/2/25, 11:53 AMComment source: Obituary -- Jack Victor Beach, Jr.Comment author: Mike HinzComment text: I had Mrs Hedges for First Grade at Northside Elementary in 1969. I still, to this day, remember her as a wonderful teacher…one of my favorites!!Comment publication date: 7/2/25, 11:29 AMComment source: Obituary - Nancy Marie Hedges C Comment author: Carl C. HagenComment text: What are MFNs and PBMs ?? ............................ From the editor: This is a very good question and we apologize for not catching that wasn't in there. We reached out to the writer/submitter and got this info back...hope it's helpful. PBM: Pharmacy Benefit Managers are pharmacies that are owned by insurance companies. (CVS is one.) They negotiate with drug makers to get reduced pricing for medications, but they historically have not passed along those savings to patients. https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/pharmacy-benefit-managers-staff-report.pdf MFN: Most Favored Nation pricing is a policy that means a country agrees to offer the same trade concessions (like tariffs or price reductions) to all member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO). When applied to pharmaceuticals, it could disrupt global access, deter innovation, and obscure the deeper systemic issues in American health care. https://petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2025/05/22/the-global-risks-of-americas-most-favored-nation-drug-pricing-policy/Comment publication date: 6/23/25, 7:47 AMComment source: L E T T E R TO THE EDITOR
SUPPORT OUR WORK