Mental Spring Cleaning is written with the right intention, but it falls short of the expectations set out in the synopsis. The book could have been a long-form article without losing its essence, and I felt the author could have gone beyond obvious tips and strategies to make the material more actionable.

I'm assuming the intended reader is someone who has never heard of laughter therapy, endorphins, or the connection between positive thinking and mental health. I was expecting deeper dive into existing literature, but the chapters only skimmed the surface of the topics.

Nevertheless, I appreciated the quirky jokes at the end of each chapter, and the beautiful pencil sketches of people laughing. I also appreciated the list of comedy TV shows, games, and books to help the reader inculcate a habit of laughing every day.

What I'd hoped was to read were discussions around the books, articles, and research around humour and stress reduction. The synopsis talks about personal anecdotes, which I could not find. The insights on how to incorporate humour into parenting was not something readers would not already know.

However, the chapter on laughter and aging is fleshed out better. Besides describing the mental, physical, and social benefits of laughter on the elderly, it also provides tips on dealing with challenges in life that are common for older adults through the use of humor. The tips aren't groundbreaking, though, but the -chapter is well-thought-out in the sense that the author segregates tips by the different types of situations aging people could face.

In conclusion, I'd suggest that future editions of the book be made more comprehensive by adding information around recent research on humor and its significance for human health. A list of YouTube channels and podcasts (apart from the Mel Robbins podcast mentioned in the book) would also be helpful.

Perhaps the author could introduce personal anecdotes from her life around how laughter and/or humor helped uplife people's moods and health. Or stories of famous people who benefited from having a positive outlook and deliberately maintaining laughter in their lives. Jackie Chan's movies and interviews, Rowan Atkinson's Mr. Bean character--these come to mind when you talk of humour and laughter.

The book is well-written and will be accessible to people of all reading and comprehension levels. It is certainly a primer to the benefits of laughter on our mental and physical health, and I hope readers are inspired enough to take up deeper reading on the subject.