most of the stories were just okay, apart from three: Odette Toutelemonde, The Intruder (although I was told about the twist) and the title story. ( )

Each of these stories happened in my head like a short foreign film. They have that weird, mysterious, artsy foreign film quality to them, but they're also pretty simple. In most of the stories there's a French woman dealing with some difficulty in her life and then a twist at the end. Sometimes I saw it coming, sometimes I didn't. Very enjoyable to read before bed so you can contemplate the nature of happiness as you drift off and have weird short foreign film-ish dreams. ( )

Book Review:

Title: The Most Beautiful Book in the World: Eight Novellas
Author: Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt
Date Read: September 4th - September 26th, 2016
Date Reviewed: September 26th, 2016

Introduction: I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. I wanted to read this because I was lacking in anthologies as of lately - I had almost none on my shelf!

Spoilers Ahead?: No.

Quick Summary: This anthology is full of eight different novellas that are not related. They are cute, short stories that are sure to entertain the reader. These are merely eight random stories, nothing that is to hard for the average reader to comprehend, and nothing sci-fi or crazy plot wise. It is a set of contemporary fiction novellas.

Evaluations: Some stories spoke more to me than others, but all eight of them were beautifully written. I enjoyed each novella as they came, and even though it took me a while to get through the novel, that was merely because I wanted to read one story at a time. If a reader goes in expecting a simple, entertaining read, than this book is for them!

Overall, I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't extraordinary. It was just a good read.

Plot: Each of the plots are finished within each story. I was thoroughly impressed by Mr. Schmitt's writing. Many authors create a fictional world within their novellas and then the reader is left craving more. Mr. Schmitt sums each story up perfectly and the endings left me feeling complete. I did not require more and I did not require less - so bravo to this fabulous author.

Themes/Creativity: When I read over other reviews of this novel, it was clear either readers swung one way or the other. You hate this set of novellas, or you love it. If you are expecting a grande, exquisite set of stories then this anthology is not for you. It is contemporary, French literature, and readers should be aware of this coming in. The stories are creative in their own right, with each being different from the rest. They are fast past, they have a simple narrative and they are not super sophisticated. I couldn't find any themes, but I would say this little anthology is creative.

Uniqueness: Each story is unique in their own way. Some of the stories, such as the first Wanda Winnipeg, may put the reader off if they are not fully invested in the anthology. Some of the stories are brighter and more unique than others, while some of them are simply plot driven and simple minded. Since this anthology was originally in French, I would have loved to read the French version without translation, because there may have been some words lost in translation.

Strengths: Mr. Schmitt's plot driven writing is by far one of the best strengths. He gets to the point and writes a wonderful story!

Weaknesses: I found that the sophistication within these stories was very bland. I would have loved some grander stories, but perhaps the book was not meant to be grande and sophisticated.

Score: 4 out of 5 stars. I enjoyed the novel, but I hoped for a little bit more. I would definitely read more wrote by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt in the future.
( )

A collection of short stories, all with female protagonists. Schmitt tells us they were written ("illegally") in intervals of dead time during the making of his film Odette Toulemonde. The story of the same name in this book is a different working out of the idea of the film, where a Famous Writer turns up, in search of the secret of happiness, on the Charleroi doorstep of the working class widow Odette who has written him a fan-letter. (Think "Belgian Willy Russell"...)

"Le plus beau livre du monde" (title story of the English version of this collection) is apparently a true story, told to Schmitt during a visit to Russia, and describes how a group of women prisoners in Siberia got the chance to smuggle out a collective letter to their children, and had to decide how how to use those few lines most effectively.

Otherwise, it's fairly standard short-story territory: A wealthy serial divorcée meets the man she manipulated into initiating her sexually, decades ago; a happily married woman changes her hairstyle and discovers that a lot of the past needs to be rewritten; a woman who has trouble accepting the imperfection of the world around her finds a way to happiness through talking about the weather; a bad actor finds out the truth about the happy night he shared with a beautiful woman many years before; we see the frightening reality of dementia from the inside.

It's all treated very smoothly and sympathetically, there are plenty of little jokes and nice bits of observation, and the characters are agreeable people to spend time with. But the stories move towards the obligatory twist in a slightly too orderly fashion, almost as though they are being prepared as examples for a writing workshop, and someone should have told Schmitt that you can't get away with so many sudden heart attacks in one book. (If you are ever cast as a character in a Schmitt story, consult your cardiologist before agreeing!) ( )

Indeed one of the most beautiful books in short stories section... ( )

Quel magnifique recueil! Chaque nouvelle est plus belle que la précédente, toutes sont profondes, émouvantes et pour tout dire, géniales. Comme quoi on n'a pas forcément besoin de circonvolutions pour dire l'essentiel. ( )

Quick, superb book of small gems, almost archetypal, most about male/female relationships, lost or found love. Most are set in France though also in other European locations. Wonderful! ( )

I love the cover and a nice quality of the Europe Editions publication. The stories, on the other hand, are readable but conventional, somewhat syrupy and clearly written from a man's perspective (the women in the novellas are either mothers, wives or lovers). Two and a half stars. ( )

Eight of the most wonderful stories I have read in a long time. Each a little different, but all concluding on a lovely, sometimes poignant note. I felt just like the woman on the cover as I read: up in the air, oblivious to everything except my reading. ( )

My favorite story in this collection was The Intruder, I did not figure it out until the end! ( )

The eight stories in this collection, written in simple prose, are about women - women dealing with heartbreak, love affairs, death, dementia.

Optimistic, profound, and a bit quirky, these stories are mostly from the perspective of women, but written by a man. Schmitt is a masterful storyteller. ( )

The eight novellas that comprise this book are short, with expertly drawn main characters that find happiness, or just miss out on finding happiness, in the most unlikeliest of places. Although the titles and the premise sound cheerful, I did not find the book so. It was quite depressing to read about people who learn what happiness is only to loose it, never achieve it, or be unable to enjoy it. So although the book is very well-written, I only gave it 3 1/2 stars due to my own emotional reaction to it. ( )

Although labeled “novellas” in the subtitle, these eight pieces are true short stories; each one contains only a few key characters and spans roughly twenty pages. In the broadest sense, these stories uncover the hidden sources of humanity’s best qualities: happiness, forgiveness, love, and generosity. Schmitt’s tormented characters stumble upon these redemptive qualities in the unlikeliest of places, often despite their own reprehensible behavior. In “Wanda Winnipeg,” a wealthy divorcée anonymously gives hundreds of thousands of dollars to her destitute first lover in an uncharacteristic showing of generosity and consideration. In “A Fine Rainy Day,” a “cynical and disenchanted” widow discovers her buried optimism. An ironical deathbed gift turns into a much-needed fortune in “The Forgery.” All eight stories in The Most Beautiful Book in the World are tightly constructed and concise without sacrificing a deep sympathy for humanity’s dark moments and a celebration of its redeeming acts.

Schmitt’s simple and artful prose captures his characters' most intimate and raw moments without melodrama. In this example from “Odette Toulemonde,” Balthazar, a wildly successful novelist, recognizes the falsity of his life:
"[H]e owned an apartment in the center of Paris which left many people feeling envious, but did he really like it? There was nothing on the walls, windows, shelves, or sofas that he himself had chosen: a decorator had done it all. In the living room there was a grand piano that no one played, a laughable symbol of social rank; his study had been designed with magazine publication in mind, because Balthazar actually preferred to write in cafes. He realized he was living in a décor. Worse than that—a décor that wasn’t even of his own making."

Schmitt relies too often on tidy endings—several stories involve conveniently-timed medical emergencies, for example—but such occasional contrivances cannot overshadow this collection’s masterful depiction of the messy but wonderful human condition.

This review also appears on my blog Literary License. ( )

Eight short stories, each dealing with men and women in search of happiness.

Eight interesting and different stories.

Eight stories, that, although dealing with the concept of happiness, don't all have happy endings, but all end in the only way that's appropriate for their particular story.

A wealthy woman who, having reinvented herself, comes across an old friend from the past.
An author, receiving a hostile review of his latest book, receives a fan's letter.
A woman who is discontented with life, marries a man who sees nothing but joy in life, and upon his death discovers an excitement in the preparation for an activity.
An aging actor returns to a town where he had a mesmerizing evening with a mystery woman, seeking to find her.
A group of female prisoners in the Gulag find a way to leave some interesting messages for their children.
A man leaves his mistress, and in dire straits, she gives away the last gift he gave her.
A woman calls the police because of a persistent intruder.
A woman gets a new haircut which her husband finds attractive, and discovers a hidden secret.

Delightful, thoughtful and provoking. ( )

Parables on Happiness