Camille is doing her best to disappear. She barely eats, works at night as a cleaner and lives in a tiny attic room. Downstairs in a beautiful, ornate apartment, lives Philibert Marquet de la Durbellière, a shy, erudite, upper-class man with an unlikely flatmate in the shape of the foul-mouthed but talented chef, Franck. One freezing evening Philibert overcomes his excruciating reitcence to rescue Camille, unconscious, from her garret and bring her into his home.
As she recovers Camille learns more about Philibert; about Franck and his guilt for his beloved but fragile grandmother Paulette, who is all he has left in the world; and about herself. And slowly, this curious quartet of misfits all discover the importance of food, friendship and love.
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
ISBN: 9780099494072
Number of pages: 480
Weight: 330 g
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 29 mm
Enjoyable, well-paced and engaging - Lucille Houston, Times Literary Supplement
Like Amélie, Hunting and Gathering stops at nothing to make the reader feel good. Reading it reminded me of tucking into one of those beautifully constructed little cakes that you see in the windows of elegant French patisseries - Sunday Telegraph
A charming, romantic - and very French - novel - Rev'd Amber Pearson, Daily Mail
An elegant, ironic tale.. this will be a classic - Cosmopolitan
Gavalda's ability to reinvent the will-they-won't-they love story makes this a refreshing five-star read with real bite - Eve
I took this book on holiday and it was the perfect choice. Great characterisation, good plot and so well written. I have loaned it to others since and everyone loves it. A feel good read if ever there was one.
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