La première gorgée de bière et autres plaisirs minuscules

Title: La première gorgée de bière et autres plaisirs minuscules
Author: Philippe Delerm
Publisher: L'Arpenteur / Gallimard (1997)
Language: French
91 pages

A collection of the little pleasures of life. If you have seen the French movie "Amélie" and remember how each character had a list of likes and dislikes; then this book can be viewed as a pleasant read of 34 "likes".  They may seem just like an everyday routine activity but some people take great joy in them and that idea is what the book is all about.

Each of the "likes" is described in a short story of about 2 or 3 pages.  Some of them are universal, but some are more typical of France and the French lifestyle.  Even if the situation was not something I was familiar with, I could still relate to the feeling it could stir in somebody because the writing was good enough to evoke those feelings in me.  For example, I have never played "La Pétanque" and have never met or seen anybody playing that game but reading about it was still very fun and I could totally relate to what the players of the game have experienced.

My favorite likes? The first sip of beer and the Agatha Christie novel! I won't spoil it for you and write all the other ones!  You will have to find out for yourself :) Enjoy!

The English translation is "The Small Pleasures of Life" with Sarah Hamp as translator. I have not read the translation so I can't really comment on it but I think it is worth reading in another language to see if all the subtleties of the French text and lifestyle could be adapted into English.

35 kilos d'espoir

Title: 35 kilos d'espoir
Author: Anna Gavalda
Publisher: Bayard Jeunesse (2002)
Language: French
96 pages


The first novel I read from Anna Gavalda.  It's the touching story of Grégoire, a 13 year old boy who is not doing very well in school but this does not mean he is stupid or that he does not have any talent.

He is struggling but gets some help from his grand-father Léon until he fails so miserably at school that even his grand-father seems to have lost faith in him, or so he thinks.

This short novel is a page turner that I could not put down.   What I really like about Grégoire's story is the compassionate tone of the narrator.  I was expecting a lot of hardships for the young boy but he was surrounded by people who cared, people who loved him.

The author was very successful in making me root for her main character.  I despaired, and laughed, and cried along with little Grégoire.  That's quite a feat, considering the fact that she only had 96 pages to make it happen.

Gavalda's story filled me with so much hope and happiness.  I wished there were more novels like this one!

I did not read the English translation but I know it is entitled 95 Pounds of Hope (translator: Gill Rosner) and there is also a Spanish version 95 Libras de Esperanza (translator: Isabel Gonzalez-Gallarza).

Good read!