The Elegance of the Hedgehog

[GilliC]

Has anyone read (or tried to read) The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery?

One of the girls on my local board recommended it, so I started looking into tracking down a copy. When I saw how many 1-star reviews it had on Goodreads, I hesitated, and decided to just wait for it to be available from the library.

It seems like everyone on TN who posted about it really disliked it, and a lot of people gave up on it.

I'm a little over halfway through it, and I think it's delightful! The characters are quirky and fun, many of the societal observations are spot on, and the prose (even in translation) is beautiful! It's one of those books that I don't even care what it's saying half the time, because it's a pleasure just to enjoy the words and the phrasing.

Surely I'm not the only person around who actually likes this book?! (Well, besides the girl who rec'd it in the first place!)

[charlatti]

It's on my shelf to re-try sometime. I started it and I definitely can see the appeal, but I need to find a time when my plot needs are low. It would be great for a kid-free couple of days at the lake or somewhere else where I could actually give it some time. So I fall into the give-up category, but someday I'll give it another go.

[5kcandlesinthewind]

I also gave up on it. And then had someone spoil it for me, and felt completely justified.
But it has a decent rating on Goodreads, so I'm sure someone else here must agree with you. Maybe.

[GilliC]

I'm curious to know why people really don't like it!

Is it the lack of plot? The language? The concierge's pretentious attitude? The wealth-bashing? The obsession with Japanese culture? (all things I've gleaned from negative Goodreads reviews while avoiding spoilers) Something else?


And I find it kind of funny that there's supposed to be some kind of twist or spoiler, because honestly I could really care less about the plot. I'm not sure how I expect it to end, but I was kind of expecting it to just stop.