Anna Gavalda

A complete delight of a story, filled with delicious, well-drawn and complex characters, the scent of Paris, the light that filters in through old windows in ancient apartments in an arrondissement tucked somewhere near the Eiffel Tower…

It made me miss Europe with an ache that I haven’t felt in a while- missing the scenery, the civilization, the subtle differences between vous and tu and all that that means. The food. The art. Sigh.

I’d like to read this in French someday, should I ever be able to drag up my schoolgirl French to anything approximating coherence. I feel reading it in the original language (though the translation is excellent) would bring even more of these feelings to the reader- and they are so pleasurable I had to immediately tell people about how lovely this book was.

A delight only spoiled by its ending- I miss the characters already. Read it. It’s a happy book. Nice nice people.… (more)

The concept behind Hunting and Gathering is super simple. Bring four very different people together and tell a story about how they coexist. Each has a personal tragedy; a difficulty finding solid ground either mentally, physically, or financially. For some, all three imbalances exist. Philibert is the understated hero who brings anorexically malnourished Camille to his barely furnished apartment. He is already sharing the space with overworked and underemotional Franck, a chef with very little time or patience for anyone except an ailing grandmother. Philibert is not without his own issues. He suffers from debilitating social anxiety. To compensate for a stutter, he dresses outrageously and is excessively polite. They all share common issues of loss, an inability to cope with family, and an undeniable fondness for one another. When Franck brings his grandmother to the dilapidated apartment as the fourth roommate the relationships grow deeper and more meaningful.… (more)