Review - The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Publisher: Europa Editions 2008
Hardcover 325 pages



Muriel Barbery's The Elegance of the Hedgehog is everything a great novel should be. It is whimsical and sad, enlightening bordering on sardonic and most of all... it is a fabulous story. But before I delve into the mechanics of said fab-u-lous story I would like to take a moment to discuss what a great story means to me. For me, a great story makes you want more. Not just more information about the characters of the novel, no, a great story brings about a desire to learn more about the world within which we live. With this particular novel I was simultaneously jotting down vocabulary lists, philosophies to discover and movies to watch. And of course, a great book should also bring you to tears. Either from sadness or from the titillating rapture that comes from exquisitely written prose.

And that brings me back to this delightful book. The Elegance of the Hedgehog introduces us to a vivid cast of characters who reside at 7 rue de Grenelle, a posh apartment building in modern Paris. The novel is told from the prospective of the eccentric concierge, Renée, who while upholding to the cliched vulgar outer appearance inherent of her class, is truly a sophisticated and cultured autodidact. The other character on which the story revolves around is twelve year old Paloma, a resident of the building who disguises her genius behind the outward appearance of a pop culture obsessed adolescent.Renée and Paloma are both hiding their true intellect and finest qualities from a world they suspect cannot or will not appreciate nor understand them. The two kindred souls finally meet when a wealthy Japanese man (Ozu) moves into the building and sees through both of their disguises. The story can at times be laborious to read and has a quite a lot to teach one about philosophy, which is understandable considering the author is a philosophy teacher herself. Yet far from being soporific, the trysts into deontology makes for a surprisingly engrossing detour. Overall this novel is a triumph and tribute to the more unassuming of us who may feel the need to blog anonymously or take quiet refuge within the disguise of familiarity and the ordinary.

Review - The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott

The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott
Publisher: Spiegel & Grau 2009
Hardback 287 pages



There is only one way that I can stomach a romance, and that is if it contains a healthy dose of history to go along with it. Luckily The Coral Thief deftly combines both romance and suspense within the historical context of the end of the Napoleonic Wars. During the reign of Napoleon, France underwent an intellectual revolution. Paris became the epicenter of new ideas, new thoughts, it was truly a time of revolution, both politically and scientifically. With the fall of Napoleon and the reinstatement of the monarchy, the importance of Paris as the center of progressive scientific thought slowly receded.

I have to admit, this book hit me in all the right places. The strong female lead, the in depth look at the science behind the story and the fact that it stayed true to it's historical context. I love books that can transport you back in time to really see what it may have been like to be a new student coming to Paris for the first time, being exposed to new ideas, new beliefs, new everything. That sense of wonder at discovering the world is larger and more grand than you ever thought possible is a gift that this author can give to every one who reads this book. That is why I love fiction, in a world that often seems devoid of surprises and wonder, it is nice to see what the world may have looked like to someone else, to see their wonder and surprise.

It is rare to find a book so dedicated to upholding the science and history in a work of fiction, but Stott does just that. You can tell through her passages the mood, the explosiveness of the period and you can almost see the menagerie in the Jardin des Plantes with her wonderful descriptions. Her book made me crave the museums of Paris. I want to stroll by the river Seine, smell the fragrance of the gardens, see the architecture and beauty of the Grande Galerie de l'évolution. I too want the wonder that Stott so masterfully creates for her main character, Daniel.

Daniel is a sympathetic character, a naive young graduate of an England college, on his way to Paris to study under the famous scientist Cuvier. While on his journey to France he meets a woman, a part of Paris's underground intellectual movement who not only steals his heart, but also a set of rare corals and manuscripts for his new position. Daniel then sets off on a journey to find her, and as he delves deeper into this life of thieves, corrupt police and revolutionary scientists, he begins to question his place in the world and the faith and values that had always seemed to him to be immutable.

I have seen that Stott has also written a biography of Darwin entitled; Darwin and the Barnacle, you can guess it will be next on my reading list!