The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

I think that this is probably my favorite novel. It is pretty academic and there's a lot that I don't agree with in terms of philosophy and themes and like the ideological aspects of the characters, but I think that that's precisely why I like it. It gives me a lot to think about and it challenges what I consider to be good and right in the world. However, I do have one complaint: my goodness what the heck is up with the ending? Really.

[DISCLAIMER]

Obviously I'm going to give away the ending. Please stop reading if you don't want me to spoil the book for you.

[END DISCLAIMER]

Okay, so I'm going to have my rant about the ending and then I'm going to go ahead with what I liked about the novel. Why the heck did Barbery kill off Madame Michal/Renee? Really? Why? I mean I was seriously looking forward to her relationship with Kakuro and for her to suddenly be offed by a dry cleaning vehicle. Really? Like what the heck? Why the sudden death?

Okay to be fair, I think the flow of the novel and just the way it led up to her death, it makes sense and honestly was a pretty decent choice just in terms of supporting the themes of Beauty and the transience of life and all that but WHYYYYYYYY?? I think that I was so firmly attached to Renee that for her to have been suddenly killed off (yes, killed off by the author) like that was a huge disappointment in the novel.

I guess while I was reading the novel, I had had this hope that somehow everything would work out and the meaninglessness that Paloma and Renee thought was life would somehow change to this renewed respect for beauty and love through their relationship. BLAH. That was probably my biggest disappointment. I mean it is a pessimistic novel so I suppose there's going to be some discordance with me and the novel but still! I can't believe Barbery killed off Renee. She was way too cool to be killed in such a crude manner. My goodness.

*edit* 2013.06.23: So I recently watched the movie and Renee's death made a lot more sense. Basically, it needed to happen in order for Paloma to gain closure in that suicidal phase of her life. Renee died while she was in love, she died loving and to Paloma, was a beautiful way for dying. Paloma was planning on dying hating the world and feeling a sense of pointlessness of continue to be a part of it and she didn't want to do that after seeing Renee's death. That's why Renee had to be killed off. It makes so much more sense now.

But I still would've liked to see Renee get together with Kakuro Ozu and have a good life with him....

Okay moving on.

So I felt like there were inconsistencies in the philosophies of Paloma and Renee but I think those flaws were intentionally put there because in the end, they decide that they were wrong (to a certain extent).

The only other complaint I would have about this novel is that in the beginning of the novel, there was one point where I couldn't fully "hear" Renee and Paloma's distinct voices. Instead I heard something in between and that was the author talking.

I feel like there was more of the author and sometimes a little too much so. I mean I wouldn't say it's a bad thing, but it didn't really contribute to the novel.

So I think that this kind of novel is the kind of novel I would want to study in depth. There's just so much philosophy and just so much food for thought that I could probably read this book over and over again and just not get enough.

I like the language and tone that Barbery used - she uses "harder" language or really just bigger vocabulary words and the way she chooses to arrange the words and the way she describes even the most mundane made the mundane seem significant. And most of the time it was. I liked how she would bring back different motifs like the camellias though I sort of wish she (he?) would've brought the idea of consonance back more. I don't know. I must say though, it was extremely well written and it had all the components that I would ever want in a novel.

It had two characters that were nit-picky about grammar. That's awesome. Barbery spends several pages talking about the misuse of a comma and brings this motif back time and time again. Some might say it's pretentious, I say it's genius.

The language and syntax was hard enough to challenge me, but it as accessible enough for me to understand what was going on. Just the thought processes that each character goes through I felt really enhanced my appreciation for beauty.

I really liked the theme of Beauty and the seeking of Beauty in life. There was a weighing of whether or not life was worth Beauty and that ending conclusion that Beauty is worth living for was just so well put together. I also liked how the sources of Beauty were both classical and modern. It's kind of like that quote "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." where Beauty is felt individually, yet collectively many can feel the same type of Beauty.

The ideologies that Paloma and Renee go through are fascinating too. Just their thought processes make them interesting people. It made me want to learn French so I could have a conversation with the author. I think I might pick it up. We'll see.

It had Japanese culture. I understood some of the references and that just made me feel cool. :D

Overall, I would have to say I really really enjoyed this novel and is definitely one of my top novels. However, I was rather disappointed at the ending though I will acknowledge that it was fitting.

Regardless, I definitely want to read this again and properly analyze this novel.

As for recommending it to others, I'd hesitate because it is somewhat on the academic side and for friends who don't like seemingly superfluous language and friends who don't like thinking about like... random philosophical things may not like it. But, I think this is one of my favorite novels.