Review: Generosity by Richard Powers

Have you ever met anyone who seemed to be completely happy, all the time? When their circumstances would have felled many a normal person? Is it part of Western culture to tend towards misery and depression? Do other ways of life result in contentment? I've taught a few like that - maybe they've got religion or music or something. Maybe they simply haven't learned that life isn't that happy (so they know more than we do: that it is?)

What if this tendency towards happiness was a genetic trait? Something that could be reproduced? Who would buy that treatment? For themselves, for their children? What would happen once big business and lawyers got hold of such discoveries?

All this is discussed in this thought-provoking novel. Richard Powers has produced another fascinating blend of science and how it affects ordinary human lives. I'm not quite sure why this author isn't as famous as other American writers - I consider The Time Of Our Singing to be one of the Great American novels. But feel free to tell me I'm not the only person in the UK reading his works!

Gear: walking on hedgehogs

I'm very fussy about footwear. For years I've done the hillwalking thing of always wearing boots. But wearing my normal boots makes my feet ache after about 8 miles. In my winter boots my feet start to scream after 4 miles. In these The North Face Hedgehogs I've covered much greater distances, including the 29 mile A'Mhaighdean one day epic.At the end of such walks my feet, instead of screaming "get these off, put something else on now", feel as if they could carry on walking forever. This is my 3rd pair, bought in a sale, they'll be locked away until my second pair wear out.
PROS

• comfortable and very light, like wearing slippers
• good grip
• just enough support for you to feel what you're walking on, without it hurting
• waterproof and breathable, I've never felt too cold or too hot

CONS

• they're only shoes, so water can get in over the top - I always pack waterproof socks, just in case
• they probably wear out quicker than boots, my first pair lasted 3 years - I never wear anything else on walks

I should say that my ankles are strong - I don't need boots to support my ankles - and I find the freedom of movement that using shoes gives me to be less wearing in general

Gear: Casio alt-6000

I bought this from Dixons, not long after they first came out, 1992 or so. It's been up every serious hill with me ever since. The altimeter is still very accurate, you just set it at the start of the walk. I set the altitude alarm for the summit on every walk and it always goes off at exactly the right time. Silly really, as you almost always know when you're at the top, but it amuses me. Everything works perfectly still. It's on its 4th battery (they last at least 5 years) and 2nd strap. You can't buy this model anymore obviously, but just in case you're wondering about reliability and longevity in Casio watches - you wouldn't believe how many other watches I've broken just working at school in the last 20 years, whereas this has been bashed about on the hills without any problem. I'm sure it will outlast me. I paid £85 for it in a sale, there's one on ebay at the min, current bid is £95. Not that I'm selling this!