Click for An Announcement from the Academic Council

The Academic Council is pleased to announce the Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, as this summer’s common book! A bestseller in Europe and the US, the book has moved readers in both its original French edition and its English translation. By turns satirical and poignant, clever and tender, the Elegance of the Hedgehog draws the reader in with its tale of unexpected friendship (the best kind) in the heart of Paris. It weaves together the perspective of Paloma, a troubled twelve year old prodigy, and that of Renée, a covert working-class autodidact. In the short span of 325 pages, these characters explore the issues of class and socioeconomic status, the relationship between beauty and philosophy, and the meaning of life itself. We hope you will enjoy this marvelous book as much as we did.