A Few Hours of Sunlight

Françoise Sagan was called the “Mademoiselle Chanel of literature.” Beginning with her very first novel, “Hello, Sadness!” (1954), which caused quite a stir, her literary career developed brilliantly. With surprising ease she created one book after another; they were translated into different languages and flew around the world in millions of copies.

The title “A Little Sun in Cold Water” was inspired by a line from Paul Éluard. The story Françoise Sagan tells in this book can easily be reduced to a simple formula: he loved her with a strange love; she simply loved him. But retelling the book is impossible—just like retelling music or clouds. Françoise Sagan remains true to herself: her prose is transparent, elegant, devoid of poses—bringing joy to generation after generation of readers.