Top Shelf Reading Picks:

I’m breaking ranks in honor of summer, as reading business books all the time can be limiting even for devout entrepreneurs. This is why I’m reviewing a piece of fiction: Even 24/7/365 entrepreneurs need to step outside of their bubble once in a while in order to stay fresh, relevant and innovative. I’m also doing this because The Elegance of the Hedgehog was, hands down, the absolute best piece of fiction I have accidentally stumbled upon since The Time Traveler’s Wife. Admittedly, some of the appreciation might have been encouraged by the fact that I read half of the book while sitting on the Promenade des Anglaise in Nice, waiting to pick up someone at the airport.

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery was one of France’s best sellers and the winner of at least four major French book awards. So, no, it has not been endorsed by Oprah and, as such, will likely remain on the “critics and employees” recommended picks section. Nor does it have the annoying “Book club questions” at the back of the book. However, if you are looking for something weightier than chick lit, Harry Potter or the Twilight series, and something more akin to what you would read in a college literature course, you might want to check this out.

The plot involves a French concierge of the lower class who hides her intelligence from the well-to-do residents at No. 7, rue de Grenelle, Paris. As such, it is like a French film where it’s more about settings and dialogue than action. What makes the novel soar is the sublime descriptions of human nature both from the concierge and a young intellectual girl who resides in the building as well as the new Japanese resident who brings them all together. Hmmm.  Now that I write that, I realize that there are some similarities to books by my favorite, Jane Austen.

I also urge you to hang on through the first 150 pages. They might be a bit rough going (especially on vacation), but it’s worth it. Here are a few of the weightier observations of the residents at No. 7 rue de Grenelle:

• Of a family on one of the floors: “The son is less dangerous because he is a real moron, but you never know: The capacity to do harm is often an item of family capital.”
• “We never look beyond our assumptions and, what’s worse, we have given up trying to meet others, we just meet ourselves. We don’t recognize each other because other people have become our permanent mirrors.”
• Of the aesthetics of sliding doors vs. swinging doors: “When a sliding door is open, two areas communicate without offending each other. When it is closed, each regains its integrity. Sharing and reunion can occur without intrusion.”
• “Many intelligent people have a sort of bug: They think intelligence is an end in itself. They have one idea in mind: to be intelligent, which is really stupid.”
• When the young girl meets the new Japanese resident: “This is the first time I have met someone who cares about me when he is talking: He’s not looking for approval or disagreement, he looks at me as if he were to say, ‘Who are you? Do you want to talk to me? How nice it is to be here with you!’ “
• On regret for calling out a phony: “I may know that the world is an ugly place; I still don’t want to see it.”

I have to admit that to enjoy this book, it helps if, like me, you are a nut for Russian novelists (Tolstoy figures prominently) and have a passing acquaintance with the major philosophers (Freud, Marx, Kafka, Descartes), and minimal knowledge of Dutch painting and Japanese cinema.  Nevertheless, the themes are universal, especially the main one–that even hedgehogs can be elegant.

Top Shelf Bottom Line: If you are looking for something a bit deeper and more thought-provoking this summer, this is the book for you. Of course, after this one, I’m going to go back and hit the biz books and a Nelson DeMille or two, as I don’t expect to find another gem like this one for a few years. And because I have to tie this into being an entrepreneur, I would say that besides stimulating your brain in a different direction, being able to step back and observe people and human behavior is a skill essential to all entrepreneurs.

One Response to “Elegant Hedgehogs”

1. M. L. Kiner Says:
   July 17th, 2009 at 5:59 am

   “The Hong Kong Connection” is a legal thriller about a gutsy female attorney who takes on high ranking International officials. It’s a taut, rollercoaster of a ride from New York to Palm Beach to Washington D.C. to Hong Kong. The plot is expertly woven, the characters persuasive, and the dialogue snappy and spot on.
   http://www.StrategicBookPublishing.com/TheHongKongConnection.html