2009 book 42

Muriel Barbery's The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Translated from the French, this novel centers on two of the residents of a fancy Paris apartment building--the middle-aged concierge and the twelve year old daughter of a well-to-do family, both of whom are pretending at mediocrity. Their lives intersect when a Japanese man moves into the building. I'm not sure how to describe this book--the usual "lovely" doesn't quite cut it. All the characters are great and I totally cried at the end. A.