Fatima's Good Fortune Book

An enchanting fable of a Parisian housemaid who transforms the lives of the people around her.

Deep in the heart of Paris, in the elegant Sixteenth Arrondissement, on the bustling Avenue Victor-Hugo, atop the genteel apartment building at Number 34bis, on the sixth floor at the end of a long landing, there is a housemaid's simple room. This is Fatima Monsour's new home.

Freshly arrived from a beautiful Tunisian island to work for the exacting Countess Poulais du Roc, Fatima Þnds herself in a city where even the most mundane tasks—walking the dog, buying the groceries, taking the métro —prove baffling. But her natural compassion and sheer grit ensure her survival, and—unexpectedly —bring good fortune to those around her. Gradually, Fatima spreads her spell: the old Countess discovers that life has not lost its capacity to delight; her spoilt nephew, Didi, is inspired to rekindle an old flame; and even the Countess's old dog, Emma, gets a new lease on life. Fatima's new friends—including her flamboyant American neighbor, Hadley Hadley III and Hippolyte Suget, a bashful ballet dancer turned burglar—all beneÞt from the magical luck that follows in her wake. And then suddenly, it's Fatima's turn, her moment to seize happiness.

Warmhearted and witty, this story of love, loneliness, and determination is alive with the sights and sounds and tastes of Paris. Fatima's Good Fortune is a tribute to the power of simple kindness in an unpredictable world.

About the Authors:
JOANNE and GERRY DRYANSKY wrote Fatima's Good Fortune side by side in a café in Paris, where they live. Both native New Yorkers, they decided more than twenty years ago to spend a year in Paris and have been there ever since.