Happiness Included

I approached this audiobook expecting to hear Eve Plumb rehash *The Brady Bunch* behind-the-scenes trivia—what I got was a bracing slap of reality. The narration (uncredited, frustratingly) lands somewhere between a late-night confessional and a TED Talk, which works surprisingly well. The performer nails the tone: equal parts weary and wry, as if Plumb herself is sipping wine while recounting industry horrors. The production quality is crisp, letting her voice sit front and center without gimmicky sound design. That said, the pacing stumbles in the early chapters, where Plumb lingers on minor childhood details before pivoting to heavier themes. It feels like she’s still figuring out what to cut, and the first hour drags as a result. By the halfway mark, though, the book finds its rhythm, delivering killer insights about aging in Hollywood and the absurdity of being reduced to a punchline. Plumb’s take on therapy—“not a luxury, a lifeline”—feels especially urgent. My one critique? The audiobook skips over her transition into visual art almost entirely, leaving a gaping hole in her reinvention story. Still, the raw authenticity of her reflections on failure and reinvention makes up for it. If you’re here for gossip, look elsewhere; if you want a no-BS guide to rebuilding your life after the world’s forgotten you, this is your playbook.