The purpose of the article is to study the influence of the French literature on the early creation of A.Brookner. Under observation are the intertextual connections between A.Brookner`s “A Start in Life” and the works of Ch.Perrault, G.Flaubert and H. de Balzac, which are actualized through quotations, or on the level of characters, plot and problems tackled. The text of the analyzed Brookner`s novel is treated with the help of popular in literature studies methods of intertextual and gender as well as comparative analyses. Analysis of factual material has shown that special attention in this Brookner`s work is paid to Balzac`s "Eugenie Grandet", allusions to which can be traced from the point of view of appearance of both heroines, their personal qualities, psychological interpretation of their actions. However, the conclusion is made that the main heroine of the pretext is used by Brookner in the transformed form in accordance with the epoch in which she lives. The intertextual connections with "Eugenie Grandet" and the other novels of Balzac`s “La Comedie humaine” are used by Brookner to solve ethical problems of moral duty, vice and virtue, facing her. On the whole the “French” topic can be traced in the usage of the French toponyms, French quotations, the very spirit of the novel.