Is there a biological basis to happiness? A genetic marker that disposes us toward joy? Such questions are at the heart of Richard Powers‘ 10th novel, Generosity: An Enhancement, the story of Thassadit Amzwar, a 23-year-old Algerian woman living in Chicago who seems incapable of sadness – until she becomes a media sensation and is slowly but irrevocably pushed to the edge. Here’s a review by Jay McInerney and an excerpt from the first chapter in the New York Times.
