LINDSAY FINDS THE FORMULA FOR HAPPINESS IN SELF-HELP BOOKS.

While at times, self-help books can sound like a bunch of religious hoopla, other times, they become oxygen and water, two elements needed for your survival. The four cornerstones of happiness could be misinterpreted as a cult mantra. Since Lindsay wasn't religious and was afraid of cults, she realized she could take these four points and apply them through her own, nonreligious filter.

Healthy body

Community

Vocation

Partner

Out of the four cornerstones, however, Lindsay North had zero.

And indeed, she felt empty inside. Everywhere you looked, it was happiness this, happiness that-propaganda aimed at young, desperate women like herself who tried to become somebody in life. But how can you become someone without a solid foundation?

When you erect a building and want it to stand firmly on the ground, you need a stone at each corner: the cornerstones. Can building a solid foundation for happiness be any different? Are the four bullet points the pathway to happiness? Is happiness nothing but a simple mathematical equation?

The Cornerstones of Happiness is a fast-paced, lively novel that deals with heavy issues yet is lighthearted. It's a mixture of a Cosmo article or a Sex and the City episode, intertwined with deep, fundamental human struggles (finding happiness and fulfillment), bringing equations, vectors, and velocity into the mix. Yet these elements come together, resulting in a modern, approachable novel with a message that isn't overly directive (like a self-help book) but invites self-exploration.