Title: Clara Reads Proust

Author: Stéphane Carlier

Translator: Polly Mackintosh

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: Gallic Books

Rating: 4.5/5

Cover:

Summary:

A tender and witty coming-of-age story about the power of literature to inspire new beginnings, peppered with a cast of quirky characters and a unique heroine. 

Clara is a hairdresser at Cindy Coiffure, a sleepy French salon with an identity crisis. Her relationship is fizzling out. Her tanoholic boss Madame Habib worships Jacques Chirac and talks longingly of her days in Paris. And now Madame Léeacute;vy-Leroyer wants to go blonde. Clara can’t help but wonder if there’s more to life than this . . . 

Everything changes when a customer leaves behind the first volume of In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. As Clara reads, she discovers a new world. And slowly but surely, she will work out who she wants to be.

Review:

Clara Reads Proust is one of those books which is simply a delight to read. It’s a very short book that can easily be enjoyed in one sitting, full of quirky charm and colourful characters. It is essentially a love letter to reading – and anyone who loves books can’t fail to understand the feelings Clara experiences as she finds a new world opening up to her. I’ve seen this compared to Amelie and it definitely has that same quirky, slightly offbeat French charm that I just love. I found Clara, and the whole cast of characters a joy to read about. It has humour, wit and also a poignant feeling to it at times as Clara begins to discover herself and everything the world of creativity can offer her. Truly an elegant delight of a read from start to finish and one I highly recommend.

★★★★.5

Huge thank you to Claire at Gallic Books for having me on the tour and sending me a copy of the book.

Buy the book:

Waterstones | Blackwell’s | Amazon