I hope someone is waiting for me somewhere.

Author: Anna Gavalda
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: This book includes Anna Gavalda's short story collection I Hope Someone Is Waiting For Me Somewhere and her novel Once I Loved Someone So Deeply. The stories depict encounters between strangers on the street, where flirting is disrupted by unexpected interference; a female veterinarian is violently assaulted and retaliates by cutting off the attacker's testicles; a childless, loveless couple finds themselves unable to communicate during a weekend getaway; a soldier receives a special "gift" at his birthday party; a pregnant woman, filled with joy, discovers that her baby is stillborn; a married man suddenly receives a call from his first love; a man who has been secretly in love with a female colleague finally wins her affection but doesn't know how to open the sofa bed when he's ready to enjoy intimate moments; a woman who dreams of becoming a writer collapses suddenly after being rejected by a publisher.
The book portrays a series of typical French bourgeois figures who, while enjoying romantic lives, fall into trivial, tedious imaginations or despairing mental states. They always want to change their lifestyles but are powerless to do so. The work blends reality with idealism, tragedy with comedy, to perfection. After its publication in France, it became a huge success, with over 1 million copies sold. The author was hailed as a "savior writer," and French media described "millions of French readers eagerly awaiting her new works as if waiting for a messiah."