Jan 16 I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere by Anna Gavalda

I read I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere only because Hunting and Gathering is really one of my most favorite novels ever and I just had to get my hands on more Anna Gavalda.

This book is a collection of short stories, and for the most part, I really don’t like short storied. I recognize that it is an artform within itself, but most short stories leave me wanting more. I like a story that has some meat on it. I want to get into a character – to laugh and cry with them, and I felt like almost every one of these stories could have been a novel in and of itself. But that’s not Gavalda’s fault – most short stories are like that for me. What I was not disappointed by was the quality of her writing, her ability to create unique characters and her ability to portray them sympathetically. Hunting and Gathering really does stand on its own, so much so that I made my husband buy me the movie, Ensemble, c’est tout when he went to Paris and I watched it in French (now that’s dedication!) – but it did star Audrey Tautou (from Amelie) so I didn’t suffer too much. I will read more Anna Gavalda and look forward to another novel by her. She is really an outstanding writer.