Headline to publish 'uplifting' French bestseller

Headline has acquired How to Find Love in the Little Things by French author Virginie Grimaldi, translated by Adriana Hunter.

The book is pitched as a "funny, moving and ultimately uplifting" read about a young woman who abandons her successful job and life in Paris following the sudden death of her father - leading her to find love, meaning and friendship in the most unlikely of places.

It was originally published by Fayard in May 2016 as Tu comprendras quand tu seras plus grande, with 160,000 copies sold across all formats in France to date. 

Commissioning editor Frankie Edwards bought world English language rights from Carole Saudejaud at Fayard. The book has sold in eight other languages and has been optioned for film too.

Its author, Grimaldi, has been heralded "a rising star on the commercial French writing scene" and was recently lauded by Livres Hebdo as "one of French fiction's powerful new voices".

How to Find Love in the Little Things is the author’s first novel to be published in English (translated by Hunter) and is scheduled for release by Headline Review in paperback and e-book in summer 2018. 

Edwards said: "I couldn’t resist the sun-drenched Biarritz setting, the humour and warmth in Virginie’s writing and her pitch-perfect take on people and relationships. Virginie is already beloved by so many French readers and we are thrilled to welcome her to Headline and bring this wonderful book to an English-language audience."

Alexandrine Duhin, Grimaldi's editor at Fayard, added: "It’s such a joy that English-language readers will be able to discover Virginie for themselves."