I Want You to Be Happy
- Author Jem Calder
- Narrator Christopher Bonwell, Gemma Lawrence
- Publisher Faber & Faber
- Publish Date 19 May 2026
- Run Time 6 hours and 59 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Fiction: general and literary, Modern and contemporary fiction.
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What to expect
AN
OBSERVER BEST DEBUT NOVELIST OF 2026
'Prepare to see this everywhere.'
Elle
'I was totally invested.' Saba Sams
'I was utterly enthralled.' Leslie Jamison
'Jem Calder is my new favourite writer.' Andrew O'Hagan
'Will appeal to
Cleopatra And Frankenstein fans, and the setting and themes is reminiscent of
Evenings And Weekends.'
Stylist
Chuck and Joey meet in a bar. He's in his mid-thirties; she's twelve years younger. He's long abandoned his ambition of becoming a novelist and now works as a copywriter at a big ad agency. 'Lead copywriter,' he corrects himself. Joey lives paycheck to paycheck on her barista wages and privately dreams of making it as a poet. They go back to Chuck's luxury flat-a world away from Joey's cramped house-share, the crumbs in her bed. Soon, Joey's imagining a future between them, and Chuck's moving on from a mistake in his recent past. Amazing, how meeting a new person can make you feel so new.
Funny, excruciating, and true,
I Want You to Be Happy is a sharp-eyed tale of two people searching for meaning and connection in modern times, missing the mark maybe, but still trying.
| Author | Jem Calder |
|---|---|
| Narrator | Christopher Bonwell, Gemma Lawrence |
| Duration | 6 hours and 59 minutes |
| Release Date | |
| ISBN | 9780571402380 |
| Format | Audiobook |
| Publisher | Faber & Faber |
| Genre | Fiction: general and literary, Modern and contemporary fiction |
| Availability | AU, GB, IE |
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