This is one of those books that teeters being a one star and four/five stars. 
 The characters are smart and they know it. And they sincerely believe it makes them different and special from the rest of the crowd - a food critique, a twelve year old girl and a fifty four year old women. The protagonists chosen for this endeavor are eclectic and their thought process is often tickling. Barbery drops lot of literary names and employs philosophical ramblings one would talk over few drinks on a boring Sunday afternoon. They don't go anywhere and the conversation is easily forgotten few hours later. 
 That being said, I found the book enjoyable. It could be the pretentiousness in observations about mundane life or belligerence towards truly inconspicuous things that no one really gives a damn about. The twelve year old is very smart for her age yet her actions are precisely what per-adoloscent would do. The choices these characters make are contradictory to what they continue to spout. Their motivations often lacks depth and actions, logic. 
 Still, I enjoyed reading this. The long winded musings only made me smile, snort or snicker.