The Way to be Happy. By Lawrence Gould. (GollanEz. 6s.)
MR. GOULD is a consulting psychologist in New York, and this book has a breezy American atmosphere which may discourage some readers. Its complete materialism based on Freud may shock others. Pleasure is accepted as the mainspring of all behaviour ; the sense of guilt is deplored ; repression and conscious virtue are said to lead to hate ; failure in emotional life is attributed to mismanagement, mainly sexual, by parents. Nevertheless, if all this can be swallowed, English readers will find a great deal of good advice here. The way to success (full enjoyment of the world and its riches) turns out to be almost that of the saint—a forgetfulness of, or living at peace with, the self, an appreciation of the virtues of others, a lack of worry about the future (not because of a kindly Providence but because the future cannot be known), a serenity that does not linger over old mistakes but goes on to something better. There arc sections on marriage and the upbringing of children which emphasise the need of kindliness and understanding, not because these arc morally " right " but because the best life can be lived when these are present. The book presupposes an urban society without a hint of poetry ; but it is excelknt in unveiling many bogus mysteries. With its short sections it is extremely readable.
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