Elegance of the Hedgehog - Tapa blanda

Nobody ever imagined that his tender, funny book with a philosophical vein would have enjoyed such incredible success. For some, it is part Sophie s World by Jostein Gaarder, part Monsieur Malaussene by Daniel Pennac. While for others it resembles a written version of the film Amélie. Either way, readers are responding in vast numbers. --Le Monde

The reader will be amused, surprised and moved by this philosophical tale: a user's guide to life which is a delight on every level. --Elle

Enthusiastically recommended for anyone who loves books that grow quietly and then blossom suddenly. --Marie Claire

Clever, informative and moving.....this is an admirable novel which deserves as wide a readership here as it had in France. --The Observer

The novel wins over its fans with a life-affirming message, a generous portion of heart and Barbery's frequently wicked sense of humour. --Time Magazine

Clever, informative and moving.....this is an admirable novel which deserves as wide a readership here as it had in France. --The Observer

The novel wins over its fans with a life-affirming message, a generous portion of heart and Barbery's frequently wicked sense of humour. --Time Magazine

Renee is the concierge of a grand Parisian apartment building, home to members of the great and the good. Over the years she has maintained her carefully constructed persona as someone reliable but totally uncultivated, in keeping, she feels, with society's expectations of what a concierge should be. But beneath this facade lies the real Renee: passionate about culture and the arts, and more knowledgeable in many ways than her employers with their outwardly successful but emotionally void lives. Down in her lodge, apart from weekly visits by her one friend Manuela, Renee lives resigned to her lonely lot with only her cat for company. Meanwhile, several floors up, twelve-year-old Paloma Josse is determined to avoid the pampered and vacuous future laid out for her, and decides to end her life on her thirteenth birthday. But unknown to them both, the sudden death of one of their privileged neighbours will dramatically alter their lives forever. By turn moving and hilarious, this unusual novel became the top-selling book in France in 2007 with sales of over 900,000 copies to-date. The French publishing phenomenon of 2007 from an initial print run of 4,000, sales of over 900,000 in hardback. Translation rights sold to 34 countries Cited in Paris Match magazine in 'highlights of 2007' along with the i-phone and facebook Winner of the prestigious 2007 French booksellers award To be published in English simultaneously in UK and US Published in Italy in October 2007 with sales to date of 400,000 AUTHOR: Muriel Barbery teaches philosophy. L'Elegance du herisson is her second novel. Her first book, Une gourmandise (Gallimard, 2000) has been translated into twelve languages. This edition is now replaced by the B-Format Paperback edition ISBN 9781906040185