NEW YORK – Through the decades Arianna Huffington’s many book tours have taken her far from home, and probably to places she would never have chosen to go otherwise, but on the evening of April 23, she was delighted to share some thoughts about her new book, Thrive, in the company of fellow Hellenes and the warmth and hospitality of the home Dennis and Karen Mehiel.

The couple welcomed the guests, and Karen said “we are so thrilled to host this event for Arianna, who is a wonderful and dear friend of ours, and to celebrate this amazing new book.”

Karen enjoyed reading the book that she said lays out “basic principles of how to live your life in a meaningful way so you can wake up every morning and say ‘yes I’m happy. “Thank you,” she said to Huffington.

The jacket of the book, published this year by Harmony Press, notes that “In Thrive Arianna Huffington makes an impassioned and compelling case for the need to redefine what it means to be successful in today’s world.”

At the core of the well-being Huffington is promoting are the pursuit of wisdom, developing one’s sense of wonder, and giving.

She calls for a third metric, or measure of success, in addition to the traditional marks of power and money, but she is not saying success and well-being have an either/or relation. Thrive is both a philosophical appeal for people to be more open to life’s spiritual dimension and a plea for balance in its practical dimension.

In the book she asks, first of all, what is the point of wealth and power if you are too burned out to enjoy them – or continue for long.

At the Mehiel residence she spoke about the powerful personal wake up call she experienced seven years ago.

It “came in the form of a broken cheekbone and a nasty gash over her eye – the result of a fall brought on from exhaustion and lack of sleep.”

What she proposes in the book does not take the place of achievement and the hard work it requires, however. Indeed the more balanced life she proposes, which includes doses of activities like prayer and meditation, philanthropic undertakings, and perhaps most importantly, healthy amounts of sleep, will actually rev up creativity and energy.

One guest who read the book thanked her for prompting him to boost his average night’s sleep from five to seven hours.

Huffington thanked the Mehiels for “opening your beautiful home with this incredible view and for bringing together so many dear friends, and so many Greeks,” which is especially meaningful to her because, as she said, “the book is dedicated to my mother, and it is full of her Greek spirit, Greece at its best.”

She touched all those present when she continued, “To celebrate it in your home, with your love – we have been friends for so many years over a lot of ups and downs,” is special. “You’ve been there for me and I’m really, really grateful for that.”

Huffington smiled and then said, “the only problem was when Dennis wanted to invest in the Huffington Post, and the Board decided it was not taking on any more investors…he’s never forgiven me for that.”

Mehiel laughed and immediately said “I forgave Arianna, I didn’t forget the Board.”