The Short and Incredibly Happy Life of Riley

by Colin Thompson

Book Overview

Human beings live for quite a long time and for a lot of that time we are not happy. We want to be taller, shorter, fatter, thinner, older and younger. Rats live for quite a short time and for most of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1933605502
• ISBN13: 9781933605500
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Kane/Miller Book Publishers
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 9.2" x 10.0"
• Age Range: 6 to 9 years
• Grade Range: Grades 1 to 4

Customer Reviews

Great for the parents who read it to the kids

I don't know how my 4-year old interprets this book (aside from the fact that she laughs), but I really like it that every time me or my husband read it to her, we get a reminder about the ridiculousnous of things we humans worry about in life. An important book!

The Short and Incredibly Happy Life of Riley

This is a lovely book. An absolute must for all ages. I showed it around at my work place and everyone was writing down the title etc. to go out and buy it for themselves. I have bought multiple copies to give as gifts. I love it.

Great story that makes you and your kids think about what is important... hmmmmm.

We (over)heard this story at a story time event and thought it was great so we bought it though we don't even have any young kids at home - only teens. However, we have managed to share it by reading it in a group whenever we have some kids visiting. Everyone, including the parents, always responds positively to this tale because it reminds us that humans are prone to forgetting how precious life is and our tendency to want more than we really need to be happy. I even took this book to the hospital and read it to my 73 year old mom. She appreciated the reminder! So - if you want an inspiring and simple to share tale that will remind you how silly human desire for consumption and bigger and better is, this is the story for you. Enjoy!!!

The clear lessons on love and how to be happy will involve many an adult, as well.

Colin Thompson and Amy Lissiat's THE SHORT AND INCREDIBLY HAPPY LIFE OF RILEY provides a run story of Riley, born happy and living a full albeit short life. Humans, on the other hand, live longer lives and are never happy. The clear lessons on love and how to be happy will involve many an adult, as well.

Happiness is . . .

The Aussies are different from you and I. They're not afraid of picture books that look like the love children of Robert Crumb and Monty Python. Take, as today's example, a little number going by the name of "The Short and Incredibly Happy Life of Riley". The Children's Book Council of Australia named this title the Picture Book of the Year. This is true. And it might take some Yanks by surprise as it's a concoction that can only be given one word: unique. Part self-help book, part searing portrait of the modern man's psyche, and part funny mousies gamboling about with derby-laden Groucho Marx look-alikes, the book is like nothing you've seen before. Some will find it too preachy and some will find it too weird. I find it just right, and it's certainly the only book of its kind I've ever run into. Definitely not for everyone, this title, but a heckuva lot of fun. Nothing bothers Riley. While other people in this world stress out and go crazy over youth, beauty, and the unattainable ideal, Riley's pretty content just where he is. While people want huge amounts of unhealthy foods, Riley's content with a moderate palate. While people buy the latest machines, technology, and stuff, Riley's happy with a sharp stick to scratch himself with. As the story goes on you see a small man in a bowler hat and his dog Bert trying to have it all. The fact of the matter is, though, that when all is said and done, happiness is easier when you have a lot less. There will be an argument, justifiably, that this is not a picture book for children at all. The whole point of the book is that being happy means lowering your expectations but not your dreams. That's a pretty adult concept. It is, in short, just the kind of lesson a person would put into a picture book intended for high school graduates. Which, due to the wacky nature of this title, may end up being its biggest market. High school kids get excited about the weird and wild anyway. Meanwhile, overprotective parents of overprotected children may worry that a picture book in which a little man adores a great big woman (that's where the Crumb kicks in) is too bizarre. Plus it has a nice message about materialism and the lust of possession. Quite frankly, I can't see that an elementary school aged child deserves to hear about this book any less than their high school equivalent but I won't be surprised if the book really hits it big with 18-year-olds. That said, it's messagey. You can't escape the premise behind the book, so don't even try. A message can be a real turn-off for a lot of people too. After all, what separates fiction from a Life's Little Instruction Book except the presence or absence of unbidden advice? I would argue that the way in which the book's premise is introduced and explained makes up for the didacticism of the subject matter itself. I like the language, the use of hyphens, and the art. Of course, the art is another matter entirely. It uses Photosho