The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

source: purchased
title: The Silver Linings Playbook
author: Matthew Quick {Twitter}
pages: 289
published: 2012
genre: fiction
first line:  I don’t have to look up now to know mom is making another surprise visit.
rated: 5 out of 5 stars

blurb:
Meet Pat Peoples. Pat has a theory: his life is a movie produced by God. And his God-given mission is to become physically fit and emotionally literate, whereupon God will ensure him a happy ending―the return of his estranged wife, Nikki. (It might not come as a surprise to learn that Pat has spent several years in a mental health facility.) The problem is, Pat’s now home, and everything feels off. No one will talk to him about Nikki; his beloved Philadelphia Eagles keep losing; he’s being pursued by the deeply odd Tiffany; his new therapist seems to recommend adultery as a form of therapy. Plus, he’s being haunted by Kenny G!

David O. Russell’s adaptation of The Silver Linings Playbook features Bradley Cooper (People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive) in the role of Pat, alongside Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Julia Stiles, Chris Tucker, and Jacki Weaver. As the award-winning novelist Justin Cronin put it: “Tender, soulful, hilarious, and true, The Silver Linings Playbook is a wonderful debut.”-quoted from amazon.com

my thoughts:
Matthew Quick tugged at my heartstrings with The Silver Linings Playbook. We get the story through the eyes of thirty-something Patrick Peoples who as the story begins is finally going home after a few years stay in a mental hospital. Pat’s mom fought hard to get him out and as part of his release agreement he has to continue seeing a therapist and continue taking medications. When Pat gets home to New Jersey you see the dysfunction in his family. His father, his brother and himself are all die-hard Eagles fans. Football is a constant in Pat’s life and it is one of the few things that makes him happy and feel normal again. It is also the main thing that allows bonding time with him and his Dad.

Without going into too much detail, we learn the reason for Pat’s stay at the mental hospital later on in the story as it is finally revealed to himself since he mentally blocks it out.

Speaking of dysfunction, Pat’s father was one of those characters that I wanted to shake some sense into. He was so distant with Patrick, flat-out ignoring him most of the time. The only time he’d be nice to his son was if the Eagles were winning. Their relationship, or lack there of was a heartbreaking part of Pat’s life. Through his flashbacks you see that his father has always been this way. It was sad when Patrick would hope that the Eagles would win a game just so that his father would be in a good mood and actually speak to him.

Author Matthew Quick masterfully infuses humor throughout a story that tackles the topic of mental health. He creates characters we can root for and this is a book with plenty of heart. The story-line flowed smoothly and if it weren’t for daily obligations like work and such I would have finished this book in one sitting.

Patrick is trying to get his life together and that is always an admirable thing. The side characters like Pat’s mom, his therapist, his best friend Ronnie, his brother Jake and Tiffany, all added to the story-line. I really liked Tiffany, she also has had a rough time the past few years and she can relate to Pat. The interactions between the two of them made me laugh out loud at times.

I’m starting to understand that we have the type of friendship that does not require many words.
p.115, The Silver Linings Playbook

The film version is one of my favorites, the cast is wonderful, and now that I have read the book, it’s a favorite as well. Although slightly different from the movie, the book is great because you really get to see the story through Patrick’s eyes. This is a story about starting over and moving on and the importance of friends and family as part of the healing process. I rooted for Pat all the way.

I believe in happy endings with all my heart.
p. 232, The Silver Linings Playbook

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Disclaimer: This review is my honest opinion. I did not receive any kind of compensation for reading and reviewing this book. I am under no obligation to write a positive review. I purchased my copy of The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick.