And it was out of this recognition that the narrative of a slim book grew, careful always to make sense, to reflect, to contextualize -- the obvious efforts of a once passive victim to exert agency over an ungovernable act.

CNN: Is our suffering God's will?

Mr. Ellena's slim book is rich with insights into the mind of a Frenchman and of a creative person in thrall to his craft.

WSJ: Book Review: Diary of a Nose | The Perfume Lover

This reviewer's choice as the best book of the year, however, goes to a slim volume put out by Oxford University Press that deserves to be a classic.

ECONOMIST: Business books