Wellness: A Novel
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(as of Sep 28, 2024 08:19:28 UTC – Details)
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR The New York Times best-selling author of The Nix is back with a poignant and witty novel about a modern marriage and the bonds that keep people together. Mining the absurdities of contemporary society, Wellness reimagines the love story with a healthy dose of insight, irony, and heart.
“A stunning novel about the stories that we tell about our lives and our loves, and how we sustain relationships throughout time—it’s beyond remarkable, both funny and heartbreaking, sometimes on the same page.”—NPR
When Jack and Elizabeth meet as college students in the gritty ’90s Chicago art scene, the two quickly join forces and hold on tight, each eager to claim a place in the thriving underground scene with an appreciative kindred spirit. Fast-forward twenty years to suburban married life, and alongside the challenges of parenting, they encounter the often-baffling pursuits of health and happiness from polyamorous would-be suitors to home-renovation hysteria.
For the first time, Jack and Elizabeth struggle to recognize each other, and the no-longer-youthful dreamers are forced to face their demons, from unfulfilled career ambitions to childhood memories of their own dysfunctional families. In the process, Jack and Elizabeth must undertake separate, personal excavations, or risk losing the best thing in their lives: each other.
Customers say
Customers find the writing brilliant, smart, and engaging. They describe the book as heartfelt, deeply moving, and uplifting. Readers also describe the humor as funny, unique, and playful. Opinions are mixed on readability, pacing, and length. Some find it interesting and timely, while others say it’s boring and painful to get through.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
LindaL –
A statement about our times…relationships and cultural phenomena
Wellness by Nathan HillWellness is a well-written, engaging, and thought-provoking novel. The New York Times describes Wellness as “a unique blend of satire and realism.” There are numerous story arcs. While some are undeniably satirical, others focus on the complexities of modern life, tackling the growth of technology and a wide array of cultural challenges with a realistic lens.In the early 1990s, one protagonist, Jack Baker, leaves his family where he grew up in Kansas, rejects life on the prairie, and moves to Chicago to pursue a life as a photographer and artist. After spying on Elizabeth through her apartment window in a manner that would lead to charges of voyeurism today, he meets Elizabeth Augustine, the other protagonist. Elizabeth also rejected her family, a wealthy one from Connecticut. They fall in love immediately, then marry and eventually have a child.Jack and Elizabeth’s child, Toby, has atypical social behaviors, and they disagree on the best way to integrate him into society. Childrearing is difficult, and their decision to build a forever home outside the city leads to several unanticipated setbacks. They soon realize they have grown apart and may not continue to enjoy the status of soulmates. As they experience issues in relationship status a decade after meeting, the novel delves into their back stories and how their families and experiences affected their personalities and life decisions.The novel only sometimes progresses linearly, but we continually learn more about Jack and Elizabeth, including their formative years, moral compasses, and careers. Elizabeth works at a company called Wellness, whose name plays into the book’s title and predominant theme. When the story focuses on Elizabeth’s career, the reader cannot help but consider what wellness means in the 21st century. The Wellness company provides placebo studies for corporations and organizations. Elizabeth’s role in the company evolves to include more power but devolves when some of the company’s studies become less ethical. Jack’s photography and art inclinations as a youngster have led to his becoming an adjunct faculty member at a college. He is most comfortable with hands-on artwork and less comfortable promoting himself on social media, which is an HR concern at the college.Through the events of Jack and Elizabeth’s upbringing, marriage, family life, careers, and life decisions, Nathan Hill creates scenarios that force us to think about myriad societal themes. These include but are not limited to the following:· Acceptance of one’s children’s dreams· Expectations of marital fidelity and fragility of marriages· Characteristics of people in upscale, urban, and other neighborhoods· Value of affordable housing· Implications of rallying for environmental concerns· The tenuous nature of friendships· Competence of builders and landowners· Effects of social media on different segments of the population, including viral social media rants· Dualities of wealth and poverty, class distinctions, dishonest accumulation of money· The omnipresence of family secrets· Placebos, fake medicine, scam doctors, and con artists posing as health professionals· Decisions about what is valuable in life· Lessons from unexpected places
Susan M. Baumann –
Marriage Opus Masterfully Done
Hillâs magnum opus is an ambitious endeavor. Itâs an exhaustive, deep-dive into modern marriage and American culture. Jack and Elizabeth meet in college in Chicago in the early 1990âs. They fall quickly and wildly in love, certain that their bond is fated and unique. Both are fleeing traumatic and stifling family environments, eager to carve out their own identities. Twenty years later, their union is on shaky ground, and both are grappling with the many stresses and strains of a long term marriage. Each is struggling with their own issues, surprised that theyâre no longer on the same page. Their once-easy compatibility is now stilted. Jack is bewildered. Elizabeth feels bored and smothered. They are at a crossroads in their relationship, and are also parenting their young son, Toby. Hill examines the marriage in intricate detail. The 600-plus page book allows the reader to truly get to know the characters and their complicated backstories. The results are often engrossing, frustrating, luminous, thoughtful, tedious and depressing. Amidst the crumbling marriage excavation, Hill also skewers American society and all that entails, offering up sharp, sometimes funny, and acerbic commentary on physical fitness, wellness, toxic positivity, tenure, work, success, sexual exploration, parenting, social media and changing relationship dynamics.Hill writes well and though this is the first of his books that Iâve read, itâs apparent that he wanted to take the reader on an expansive, encompassing journey into the lives of these earnest and troubled characters. Because of the scope and heft of the book, it wasnât one that I could read without intermittent breaks. I picked it up frequently and would then set it aside occasionally, not because it wasnât interesting, but because the material was often dense and involved. Itâs not a light read, and will require an investment of time. Itâs a book to ponder. The last portion of the book was the most satisfying to me. The reader finally discovers Jack and Elizabethâs motivations, that run like electric currents beneath their carefully curated exteriors. The sudden revelations are subtle, stark and shocking. These particular scenes are so finely-drawn, steeped in melancholy and illuminating clarity. The bookâs redemptive conclusion ties the story together in a full-circle moment that is masterfully done.
Margaret Nero –
Wellness is by far the most incredible book Iâve read in a long time! Nathan Hill weaves contemporary topics so cleverly into the lives of the two main characters. I enjoyed learning about topics such as algorithms and placebos. A wonderful book- I highly recommend it!
Mr Fast –
Demasiados intentos por parecer moderno, junto con una excesiva longitud de la novela, me hicieron dejarlo a la mitad.
Liz Stopani –
A journey through physical, mental and emotional developments of the different members of its characters set in the changing backgrounds of place, traditions ,expectations and communications.
Marie –
Ich habe für das Buch lange gebraucht in dem Sinne, dass ich es erstmal weggelegt hatte, weil ich in der Phase aber auch nicht viel Zeit hatte. Insgesamt ist es ein sehr gutes interessantes Buch über ein Pärchen über verschiedene Lebensphasen hinweg. Jedoch keine typische Romantik Geschichte, sondern deren Hintergründe, aufwachsen usw und wie sich die beziehungsdynamik über die Jahre hinweg sowie durch externe und interne Einflüsse ändert. Sehr spannend. Dazu auch Einblicke in das jeweilige Berufsleben und andere interessante Themen Gebiete wie zb der Algorithmus von Facebook. Sehr empfehlenswert!
Erika NZ –
A decent story, however very long. In parts it was thick with unnecessarily waffle, and really could have done with whole sections being struck out.