First published in French as L’Échappée belle, Anna Gavalda’s Breaking Away is indeed a beautiful escape. Short, yet prefectly formed, it’s more of a novella at 142 pages of charming prose translated into English by Alison Anderson.

I hadn’t even sat down yet, one buttock still hovering, my hand on the car door, and already my sister-in-law was on the attack.

Whilst the plot is simple, a car journey to a wedding, the relationships between siblings are at the core of the story. Two sisters, two brothers and a sister-in-law who is undoubtedly the outsider, most readers will relate to the characters in some way and it’s a lovely slice of family life. It’s witty and hits the nail firmly on the head. A top notch summer read, especially if you’ve not got much time to spare!

I will certainly be looking up more of Anna Gavalda’s work in future. Thank you to Gallic Books for providing me with a copy to review.

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