One More Theory about Happiness - by Paul Guest (Paperback)

About the Book

"In these lyrical, searing pages, Guest manages to break our hearts and put them back together again."--Ann Hood

In the tradition of Lucy Grealy's Autobiography of a Face, One More Theory About Happiness is a bold and original memoir from the acclaimed, Whiting Award-winning poet Paul Guest, author of My Index of Horrifying Knowledge. A remarkable account of the accident that left him a quadriplegic, and his struggle to find independence, love, and a life on his own terms, One More Theory About Happiness has been praised by Charles Bock, author of Beautiful Children, as, "Smart and honest and clear eyed and above all, humane."

Book Synopsis

"In these lyrical, searing pages, Guest manages to break our hearts and put them back together again."
--Ann Hood

In the tradition of Lucy Grealy's Autobiography of a Face, One More Theory About Happiness is a bold and original memoir from the acclaimed, Whiting Award-winning poet Paul Guest, author of My Index of Horrifying Knowledge. A remarkable account of the accident that left him a quadriplegic, and his struggle to find independence, love, and a life on his own terms, One More Theory About Happiness has been praised by Charles Bock, author of Beautiful Children, as, "Smart and honest and clear eyed and above all, humane."

From the Back Cover

Whiting Award-winning poet Paul Guest was twelve years old, racing down a hill on a too-big, ancient bicycle when he discovered he had no brakes. Trying to steer into anything that would slow him down, he hit a ditch, was thrown over the handlebars, and broke his neck.

One More Theory About Happiness follows a boy into manhood, his path marked by a hard-earned acceptance and a biting sense of humor. In incisive and lyrical prose, Guest shows us that a body irrevocably changed can lead to a life fiercely cherished.

Review Quotes

"[Guest] tells his story in short scenes that break to white space before they might prompt pity. He zigzags before we might hold him up as an example, a symbol...His memoir voice is gentle and matter-of-fact. His details are astounding and unforgettable." - Dallas Morning News
"Guest's poems combine furious rage with furious excitement in long, breathless lines that, at the last possible moment, break." - New York Review of Books
"[A] tightly written, candid memoir...[Guest] unearths a poet's faculty for succinct, smart description, narrating his own life in this memoir as a surprisingly dispassionate observer...Clearly, [Guest's] book offers no squishy, simple answers to be embroidered into a throw pillow. Guest gives his predicament and the reader more respect than that." - Cleveland Plain Dealer
"[A] tightly written, candid memoir...[Guest] unearths a poet's faculty for succinct, smart description, narrating his own life in this memoir as a surprisingly dispassionate observer." - Cleveland Plain Dealer
"[A] graceful and unflinching account....The book is not an easy read, nor is it a feel-good story that paints Guest's injury as a blessing in disguise. By turns dispassionate, disgusted, furious, embarrassed, appalled and hopeful, the author lays bare his heartache at losing a world he had barely begun to experience as he sets a determined course toward independence. It's a remarkable journey that Guest, who possesses a dark sense of the absurd and an eye for the vulnerability of both the injured and the whole, presents in scenes that run the gamut from the horrific to the sublime." - Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"[A] graceful and unflinching account....a remarkable journey that Guest, who possesses a dark sense of the absurd and an eye for the vulnerability of both the injured and the whole, presents in scenes that run the gamut from the horrific to the sublime." - Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Now in his memoir, "One More Theory About Happiness," Guest writes more directly than ever before about his paralysis. After a short prologue, the book begins with a recounting, harrowing in its matter-of-factness, of the accident that has shaped his life...For those familiar with Guest's poetry, his memoir is most engaging as a coming-of-talent story...Guest's work, which cannot redeem his brokenness or ours...makes something beautiful out of it. And that is enough." - New York Times Book Review
"Guest writes more directly than ever before about his paralysis.... Guest's work, which cannot redeem his brokenness or ours...makes something beautiful out of it. And that is enough." - New York Times Book Review
"Guest remembers; gently, carefully, painfully, each new milestone from the accident forward. He is blessed with a sharp sense of humor...it is an effervescent book: irrepressible, buoyant." - Los Angeles Times
"Lean, arresting . . . With zero gush and sentiment, [Guest] conveys [a] quiet heroism . . . Guest is an unconventional and provocative observer of himself. And of us, the 'able-bodied.' " - USA Today
"ONE MORE THEORY ABOUT HAPPINESS chronicles the years that follow as [Guest] battles his physical limitations on the unfettered playground of his poet's mind. Far from a saccharine 'triumph of the human spirit, ' Guest's memoir is marked by his winning humor and bare-naked honesty, distilled into poetic prose. His poetry is brutal, funny, and tender - an unusual and exhilarating mix. Together [with MY INDEX OF SLIGHTLY HORRIFYING KNOWLEDGE] the two books paint an indelible portrait of a writer, and alert us to the amazing ability of the human body and mind to reconcile with an unbearable reality." - NPR.org
"Far from a saccharine 'triumph of the human spirit, ' Guest's memoir is marked by his winning humor and bare-naked honesty, distilled into poetic prose....alert[s] us to the amazing ability of the human body and mind to reconcile with an unbearable reality." - NPR.org
"In ONE MORE THEORY ABOUT HAPPINESS Paul Guest tells us his unbelievable story, guiding us with consummate skill through an unthinkable situation, a deep level of hell, really. He never is self-pitying, never gets sentimental, this is not feel good tripe, or inspirational; it is deeper and more important than that--smart and honest and clear eyed and above all, humane. - Charles Bock, bestselling author of BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN
"[An] unbelievable story...[about] an unthinkable situation, a deep level of hell, really. Guest is never self-pitying, never gets sentimental; this is not feel good tripe, or inspirational; it is deeper and more important than that--smart and honest and clear eyed and above all, humane." - Charles Bock, bestselling author of BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN
"Never mawkish or grim, Guest's lyrical narrative ability tempers the heft of his experience, but the tender age at which he endured this grueling ordeal resonates on every page. Inspiring and courageous." - Kirkus Reviews
"ONE MORE THEORY ABOUT HAPPINESS is sweet and beautiful and wrenching. By so generously providing a window into his own difficult experience, Guest shows us how profoundly fragile the human body truly is, how quickly our lives can be changed forever, how much strength it takes to continue on--and most importantly, how it's possible to create a new definition of wholeness." - Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, author of WHEN SKATEBOARDS WILL BE FREE
"I read this book in one sitting, staying up well past midnight to see how Paul Guest learned-- and continues to learn--to navigate the life he has been given to live. Ostensibly a memoir of one man's growing up inside the inescapable solitude wrought by a devastating accident, this exquisitely crafted story turns out to be a tale of love, of life, and of language's ability to eclipse the crushing presence of the physical world. Heartbreakingly funny, pitilessly honest, ONE MORE THEORY ABOUT HAPPINESS is above all a quiet and bold and loving work of art that renders beautifully what it means to live. You must read this book." - Bret Lott, #1 New York Times bestselling author
"I read this book in one sitting....Heartbreakingly funny, pitilessly honest, [this] is above all a quiet and bold and loving work of art that renders beautifully what it means to live. You must read this book." - Bret Lott, #1 New York Times bestselling author
"Sweet and beautiful and wrenching. By so generously providing a window into his own difficult experience, Guest shows us how profoundly fragile the human body truly is, how quickly our lives can be changed forever...and most importantly, how it's possible to create a new definition of wholeness." - Said Sayrafiezadeh, author of WHEN SKATEBOARDS WILL BE FREE