Delicacy: A Novel
Amazon Best Books of the Month, February 2012: David Foenkinos has been showered with accolades, including nominations for France&rsquo;s top five literary awards, and here&rsquo;s another: His new novel is one of the finest of the year. Sly and funny, with a dark patina that belies its nationality,Delicacytraces the relationship between Natalie, an ambitious young beauty, and Markus, a kind and bumbling introvert. She, suddenly widowed, seems untouchable; he has, as the French say, no game, but he manages to touch her anyway. We get the pleasure of watching it happen, and Foenkinos&rsquo;s precise, insightful style makes us forget that these two are falling in love on the page and not right in front of us. Don't be fooled by the chick-lit cover or the forthcoming feature film starring Audrey "Am&eacute;lie" Tautou.Delicacyisn't a bonbon, it's a main course--rich and nuanced and completely satisfying. --Mia Lipman