"Hunting & Gathering" by Anna Gavalda

I was in a bookstore the other day and noticed Anna Gavalda’s new book “Consolation” on the table. I had to buy it to take away on holiday next week, as I loved Anna’s book, Hunting and Gathering which was released in Australia a few years ago. Some of you may be familiar with the movie of the same name which is based on the book (with English subtitles).

What made it such a memorable book for me that I have read it three times? I would have to say I was drawn to the wonderful characters in the novel - characters which had layers of complexity that had to be peeled away to reveal the true person underneath. While the plot of the novel is quite simple, Anna has created characters with which you live their story, characters that make you want to get to know them better, to be part of their world. Anna is a French writer, and I think that interesting characters are one of the strengths of European writers.

There is Camille, a young woman with a past she is trying to escape. By night, Camille works as a cleaner of corporate offices making friends with a diverse group of women, and by day lives in a tiny, freezing attic rarely venturing out into the world. What is her story, I kept asking myself as I read. She seemed so out of place in this setting. Her neighbour, Philibert, is a quirky French aristocrat, a man born into a family entrenched in the past. Philibert is a contradiction.  He has a academic's knowledge of French history but sells postcards outside a museum for a living. Philibert’s flatmate, Franck, is a moody, womanising, but talented chef, drowning in guilt after having to put his beloved grandmother, Paulette, into a nursing home. He resents the huge hours he works to pay for his fast motorbike and his grandmother’s nursing home fees. Philibert and Franck are an unlikely pair to share an apartment, as they seem to have little in common.

When Philibert rescues a very sick Camille from her garret and brings her to stay, things are not so peaceful in the apartment. As Franck says “the minute you let a girl in, all hell breaks loose. Everything gets complicated, everything becomes a pain in the ass and even the best buddies end up shouting at each other”. Sure enough things change as they all learn to trust each other, to become friends. While Camille and Franck give the story the drama and scenes with their hate/love relationship, Philibert and Pauline are responsible for bringing softness and emotion, and you just want to give them a hug. Each character has a past that unravels over the course of the book, generating our sympathy, understanding, and admiration.

Unlike other books I have read, Anna has managed to bring out the personality of each character without bogging the reader down and slowing down the overall story. I thought this book was a beautiful story of friendship and love, not to mention the food that binds them together and just the right thing to pick you up when things are not going to plan.  I can't wait to dig my teeth into her new book, Consolation.  You might like to learn more about the author in this interview and a review of Consolation here.