Key to the secret of happiness
The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness is a true story of a storyteller, Joel ben Izzy. It is published in September, 2005. Joel shares personal experiences that have caused him to search for life’s true meaning in twenty years as a father, a husband, a student and a cancer patient. The title The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness is apropos for this book because King Solomon’s life matches Joel’s experiences. Joel begins his stories with the tale of King Solomon, who was a great king of Jerusalem, lost his kingdom and turned into also a beggar. Solomon took off his magic ring, suffered many difficulties during his travel to the other side of the world although he was not used to his life of poverty as well as Joel, a storyteller, in a similar way, who had a dark time when his could no longer speak. When Solomon found his ring again, and returned to his beloved country, he was even wiser than before. He knew what it was to have everything, and what it was to have nothing. Joel, on the other hand, was at the top of his game when complications from cancer surgery robbed him of his voice. Although the tales he told held great wisdom, he failed to grasp their true meaning until the day he lost his voice. Eventually, he finds happiness just when he thinks he has lost everything. A surgery restored his voice. Joel finally finds the secret of happiness. Joel addresses the great question of how to find happiness in his life. The stories he shared coincide with his real life.
First, the title fits the book because it relates to the folk tale “The Beggar King”. “He [King Solomon] had been forced to make his way as a beggar” (213). This shows that King Solomon transformed into a beggar by Ashmodai. Once a king, he was now robbed of his riches and power. “‘I [Joel] was the subject of many such articles: ‘Local Boy Travels World, Telling Tales’.” (53). Joel made big achievements on storytelling. Just like Solomon was once a wise...