"Studied Yet Appealing Commercial Hit" - The New York Times "A High - Wire Performance" - Los Angeles Times "The Most Exhilarating and Extraordinary Novel in Recent Years." - Elle (France) We are in an elegant and posh hotel in the center of Paris. Renée, the building's concierge, is short, ugly and plump. She is addicted to television soaps and her only genuine attachment is to her cat, Leo. But Renée has a secret: she furtively devours art, philosophy, music and Japanese culture. With biting humor she scrutinizes the lives of the building's tenants - her inferiors in every way except that of material wealth. Then there's Paloma, a super - smart twelve - year - old and the youngest daughter of the Josses, who live on the fifth floor. Talented, precocious and startlingly lucid, she has come to terms with life's seeming futility and has decided to end her own on the day of her thirteenth birthday. Until then she will continue hiding her extraordinary intelligence behind a mask of mediocrity. Paloma and Renée discover their kindred souls when a new tenant arrives, a wealthy Japanese man named Ozu. He befriends Paloma and is able to see through Renée's timeworn disguise to the mysterious event that has haunted her since childhood. This is a moving and witty novel that celebrates the quiet victories of the inconspicuous among us.
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