This Is Happiness
Dec 2019 · Bloomsbury Publishing USA
star
5 reviews
Ebook
400
Pages
About this ebook
* Pre-Order Niall Williams' next story set in Faha O NOW! *
The November 2025 Late Show Book Club Pick!
"I am such a fan of Niall Williams." -Ann Patchett, New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake
A profound and enchanting novel set in the rural Irish village of Faha, from bestselling Time of the Child author Niall Williams, about the loves of our lives and the joys of reminiscing.
The rain is stopping. Nobody in the small, forgotten village of Faha remembers when it started; rain on the western seaboard was a condition of living. Now--just as Father Coffey proclaims the coming of electricity--it is stopping. Seventeen-year-old Noel Crowe is standing outside his grandparents' house shortly after the rain has stopped when he encounters Christy for the first time. Though he can't explain it, Noel knows right then: something has changed.
This is the story of all that was to follow: Christy's long-lost love and why he had come to Faha, Noel's own experiences falling in and out of love, and the endlessly postponed arrival of electricity--a development that, once complete, would leave behind a world that had not changed for centuries.
Luminous and otherworldly, and yet anchored with deep-running roots into the earthy and the everyday, This Is Happiness is about stories as the very stuff of life: the ways they make the texture and matter of our world, and the ways they write and rewrite us.
Niall's other novels set in Faha include History of the Rain and Time of the Child, which are both available now!
The November 2025 Late Show Book Club Pick!
"I am such a fan of Niall Williams." -Ann Patchett, New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake
A profound and enchanting novel set in the rural Irish village of Faha, from bestselling Time of the Child author Niall Williams, about the loves of our lives and the joys of reminiscing.
The rain is stopping. Nobody in the small, forgotten village of Faha remembers when it started; rain on the western seaboard was a condition of living. Now--just as Father Coffey proclaims the coming of electricity--it is stopping. Seventeen-year-old Noel Crowe is standing outside his grandparents' house shortly after the rain has stopped when he encounters Christy for the first time. Though he can't explain it, Noel knows right then: something has changed.
This is the story of all that was to follow: Christy's long-lost love and why he had come to Faha, Noel's own experiences falling in and out of love, and the endlessly postponed arrival of electricity--a development that, once complete, would leave behind a world that had not changed for centuries.
Luminous and otherworldly, and yet anchored with deep-running roots into the earthy and the everyday, This Is Happiness is about stories as the very stuff of life: the ways they make the texture and matter of our world, and the ways they write and rewrite us.
Niall's other novels set in Faha include History of the Rain and Time of the Child, which are both available now!
* Pre-Order Niall Williams' next story set in Faha O NOW! *
The November 2025 Late Show Book Club Pick!
"I am such a fan of Niall Williams." -Ann Patchett, New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake
A profound and enchanting novel set in the rural Irish village of Faha, from bestselling Ti...
Ratings and reviews
5 reviews
Michael Downey
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June 2, 2026
Reading This is Happiness is like sitting down to a large bowl of thick, rich stew filled with tasty morsels that warmly fill your belly and nurture your soul. Every sentence of Niall Williams' prose is so rich with description and meaning that you don't mind how long it takes to read because each paragraph is a satisfaction of its own.
Sophia Baker
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July 4, 2026
Just felt led to say that Jesus loves you so much and is the only way to heaven believe and trust in him. I am 17 years old and i am saying this from the bottom of my heart believe he died on the cross for our sins believe the gospel. i hope yall are having a blessed day God bless🙏🙏🙏
About the author
Niall Williams is the author of ten novels, including History of the Rain, which was longlisted for the Booker Prize, Four Letters of Love, which is now a major motion picture starring Helena Bonham-Carter, Pierce Brosnan and Gabriel Byrne, and the national bestseller This Is Happiness. His most recent novel Time of the Child was an instant national and international bestseller and was awarded the Kerry Group Novel of the Year Award. He lives in Kiltumper in County Clare, with his wife, Christine.
Niall Williams is the author of ten novels, including History of the Rain, which was longlisted for the Booker Prize, Four Letters of Love, which is now a major motion picture starring Helena Bonham-Carter, Pierce Brosnan and Gabriel Byrne, and the national bestseller This Is Happiness. His most ...
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