Sad Happens, Brandon Stosuy
Sad Happens, Brandon Stosuy
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

Sad Happens

Author: Brandon Stosuy

Narrator: Deanna Anthony, Reena Dutt, Cynthia Farrell, Em Grosland, Nikki Massoud, George Newbern, André Santana, Eric Yang

Unabridged: 6 hr 10 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/14/2023


Synopsis

A beautifully illustrated, celebratory anthology exploring sadness—and the transformative power of tears.

When was the last time you cried? Was it because you were sad? Or happy? Overwhelmed, or frustrated? Maybe from relief or from pride? Was it in public or in private? Did you feel better afterwards, or worse? The reasons that we cry—and the circumstances in which we shed a tear—are often surprising and beautiful. Sad Happens is a collective, multi-faceted archive of tears that captures the complexity and variety of these circumstances.

We hear from Mike Birbiglia on the role that grief and pain have in comedy; Jia Tolentino on how motherhood made her cry in both hormonal joy and fervent rage; and Hanif Abdurraqib on the intimacy of crying on planes. We hear from Phoebe Bridgers on poignant moments of departure and JP Brammer on the strange disappointments of success; Matt Berninger on becoming a crybaby in his adulthood and Hua Hsu on crying during a moment of public uncertainty. We also hear from everyday people in a range of professions: an actor on the tips she learned from drag queens about preserving a full face of makeup while crying; a zookeeper on mourning the animals who have died during her tenure; a bartender on crying in the walk-in; and a TV critic on the shows that have moved her.

Brimming with humanity, this anthology is confirmation that sad happens—but so does joy, love, a sense of community, and a host of other emotions. By turns moving and affirming, Sad Happens is an emotional balm and visual delight.

About Brandon Stosuy

Brandon Stosuy is the cofounder and editor in chief of The Creative Independent, published by Kickstarter. He previously worked as director of Editorial Operations at Pitchfork. Brandon curates the annual Basilica SoundScape festival in Hudson, New York, and has been a music curator at both MoMA PS1 in New York City and the Broad museum in Los Angeles. He is the author of three books on creativity, Make Time for Creativity, Stay Inspired, How to Fail Successfully, and two children’s books, Music Is... and We Are Music. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two children.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Erica on February 09, 2025

Such a cathartic read especially with the world right now. Highly recommend if you need an emotional release.......more

Goodreads review by Madeline on September 07, 2024

This book does a good job at normalizing tears and whatever emotion may come along with it! Good coffee table book that you can pick up and put down whenever.......more

Goodreads review by Lauren on December 29, 2023

absolutely gloriously poignant and meaningful artwork!! that was my favorite part, plus the whole concept for this book speaks deeply to my soul! i loved the variety and simplicity. the phoebe bridgers essay was my favorite.......more

Goodreads review by Laura on November 07, 2024

Beautiful! I started reading it the day the election results came in, after I had just burst into spontaneous tears in the middle of the Chinese food buffet. The first piece of writing was from @nifmuhammad so I was just ruined within seconds. Not all the essays were devastating, actually none of th......more

Goodreads review by Becky of Becky's Bookshelves on November 21, 2023

I enjoyed Sad Happens A Celebration of Tears. The book is a collection of essays that were thought provoking, introspective, and just the right length. I have been reading a few excerpts a day over the last week. I have been struck by the variety of contributors from so many diverse walks of life.......more