I finished reading Muriel Barbery’s The Elegance of the Hedgehog a few days ago, actually it has almost been a week. I wanted to write something about it but haven’t been able to put anything into words, at least appropriate words.
It was one of those rare books that gladdens the heart and makes you weep at the same time. I couldn’t read it fast enough, couldn’t put it down, couldn’t wait to get back to it. With a little more than 50 pages left, I settled into my spot on the back patio and dove headlong into this beautiful text.
This book is about big ideas and small things. The tiny pleasures of life fully enjoyed. Small observations leading to great understanding. Opposite stories gracefully intertwined.
As always, I jotted down sentences and noted things to further explore. But two quotes from the book really stood out:
“…but we all know perfectly well that, in essence, dreams and waking hours do not have the same texture…”
Think about the truth in those words.
And then:
“You might note that the most noble concepts often emerge from the most coarse and commonplace things.”
To compose common language into sentences that move the soul is a true art, and it is one to which I aspire. To do so requires living life and broadening experience, and one of the many ways to do so is to read. My father used to say, “learn another language, live another life.” I think the same is true about reading.
Giving yourself totally to another world, one made up of people and places and situations that you may never encounter, is more than a great way to spend a few hours. It’s a way to explore who you are, what you believe, and what the world means to you. At least it is so for me.
This book moved me in a way that I haven’t experienced in quite some time, and the sadness of ending such a masterpiece is in determining what comes next. What could I possibly follow this with? When will I shake the characters, or will I? Do I even want to?
My friend Teresa Southwell directed me to this book. Truly a gift, and one that I share with you now. Give it a go and see if it warms your soul.
