Chocolat

Rating:
Summary: Actually, I liked the movie better
Review: I started reading this book when my book club chose it. I wasn't too thrilled about reading it, because of some other reviews I read, but I thought I would give it a shot.

I didn't like the change in person in the book. The author kept changing who was talking. One chapter it would be Vianne (the owner of the chocolate shop) and then the next chapter would be the priest. Both talkers would talk in the first person, (I did this...) and so it got a bit confusing. The only saving grace was that in the edition I had, the font was different.

Second, there was quite a bit of french in the book. There was no translation, so if someone like me, who hasn't had any French training, it was complete confusion! I had no idea what they said...I would have to go to a translation website or dictionary, and this was a royal pain! It slows down the reading.

Finally, I really enjoyed the movie, because it flowed much better than the book. There are scenes in the book that aren't in the movie and scenes in the movie that weren't in the book. I think the scenes in the movie worked better and weren't as confusing.

I wouldn't recommend buying this book. Borrow it from your library instead, and then only if you need to read it.

Rating:
Summary: So much better than the movie
Review: This is a must read for women. I saw the movie and thought it was so-so. The book gives so much more detail about the characters lives and their history they almost come to life. If you saw the movie and it left you wanting more the book will give you insight into the motivation and psychology behind the action. If you did not see the movie, read the book first!

Rating:
Summary: What's next? Caramelle?
Review: I loved this book, it made me want to open a candy shoppe..and feel a sequel is in order.

The descriptions of the chocolates and candy made my mouth water, and I could see all the lovely packaging in my mind's eye.

Story wise, the author barely touches on Vianne's biological parentage, but drops us a major hint, and I want to know more...and I want to know why Vianne hasn't searched more!

I'd like to hear more about Reynaud....his "ending" was rather anti-climactic. I was almost expecting a Dickensian twist; that he and Vianne might have been siblings!

Yes, the lines were drawn a little too distinctly; the Bad with Reynaud, Muscat and Caro; the Good with Vianne, Armande and Josephine ....

...but then the grey area was intriguing...why did Vianne suddenly sleep with Roux; what was that all about? What will happen now that the wind "allows" her and Anouk to stay in one place; what of the fatherless child to come? What of Josephine's relationships with both Vianne and Roux? Will she feel betrayed by them both?

The story switched gears when Vianne slept with Roux and betrayed her friend; she knew Roux and Josephine were burgeoning in their relationship, but she slept with Roux anyway...at that point Vianne's goodness gets muddy; was she selfish?....what consequences will she face?

I hope there is more to this story to come.

Rating:
Summary: I feel sick.
Review: I'll say the good points of this book first. The bare bones of the story are original, and you probably won't be able to predict the end. The description is also pretty good, and Harris switches from Vianne's to Renaud's viewpoints neatly and creates realistic voices for the two characters.
BUT...
This book is prejudiced and shallow. All the people on Vianne's side are wonderful, kind, sensible and interesting. All the people on Renaud's side are evil, cruel, vicious, pretentious and/or violent. Why couldn't we have had some Christians who wanted to worship yet liked chocolate? Or some chocolate-lovers who were mean?
I totally lost sympathy for Vianne after she slept with Roux. This seems a completely unnecessary plot twist. She had no intention of forming a relationship with him - her only excuse is that now she has another child who will grow up loving "life on the road." Considering she herself, as well as Anouk, has felt lost and rootless sometimes I wonder that she's so confident about bringing another child into such a situation.
The final conflict with Renaud was also poorly handled. His motivations and background were set up throughout the book and then at the end he just left, his story unresolved and his beliefs held in contempt. There was no proper resolution. Also I felt sorry for him and actually liked him a lot more than Vianne!
I find this book offensive to Christians, prejudiced and one-sided in its views and characters, and overall tiresome. I don't recommend it unless you are (a) anti-Christian (b) very, very into chocolate or (c) bored.

Rating:
Summary: Literary and culinary enchantment: a rare treat!
Review: Amid the myriad novels one can read, there are a rare few which are truly a boisterous and grand celebration of life. This is one of those. Written in a sublime and tasty prose, full of sensual detail and delight, this is an extreme pleasure to read from first word to last delicious morsel. There's also just a hint of magic here that again never fails to enchant. Harris's characters are huge and memorable from the valiantly wicked while dying Armande to the romantic mystery Roux to the charmingly vile priest Reynaude. Subtle, but lovingly playful, there is everything to recommend this novel. Admirers of the prose of Isabel Allende, Alice Hoffman, Laura Esquivel, Jorge Amado, and many of the other magical realists will also enjoy Harris, but this book is for anyone who loves a good story, richly told.

Rating:
Summary: Magic and good food makes the world go round....
Review: Chocolat - by Joanne Harris

Here is a book filled with magic and smells and tastes that had me craving chocolate and sweets the entire time I was reading it! Chocolat is the story of an unmarried woman, Vianne Rocher, her 6-year-old daughter Anouk, and their impact on a small French town called Lansquenet. Lansquenet is a very Catholic place, and the townspeople (parishioners) are very structured in the way they lead their lives. Church on Sunday, abstinence during Lent - only a handful dares to disobey these traditions. Vianne comes to town with a mission - to show these people how to live and love and enjoy life to the fullest.

Enter Pere Reynaud. He's the head of the local church, the shepherd for his sheep of followers. He hides behind the cloth and believes that what he preaches is for the good of the church and in the name of God. However, a lot of hate and prejudice underlies what he preaches in the chapel. He instantly sees Vianne as the enemy (her being unmarried has Reynaud labeling her from the start). Vianne, with her instincts and sixth sense, sees all this, and decides to help the town overcome Reynaud's unhealthy grip on their lives.

She soon opens up a chocolate shop in the middle of Lent, shocking the townspeople and Reynaud especially, but soon she wins many of the townspeople over. We are introduced to many interesting characters, all of whom become Vianne's friends and supporters, including Roux, a rough-looking vagrant gypsy, and Armande an older woman with the spirit of a younger one.

The book heads towards a climax with the announcement of a Chocolate festival at Easter. At first the town splits into factions, and the reader is left to guess who will win - Pere Reynaud, or Vianne Rocher.

Told in the viewpoints of two narrators, Vianne and Pere Reynaud, the reader learns slowly of Pere's darkest secrets and Vianne's deepest fears. Pere's narration is told as he "speaks" to an older priest and apparent confidante, confiding in him his doubts and sinful feelings, revealing secrets that are probably left untold. Through Vianne's narration, we learn of her past and the reasons why she fears Pere Reynaud so much.

I highly recommend Chocolat for its imagery and beautiful writing. I consider it light reading despite some of its heavier themes, but all in all, a great summer read.

Rating:
Summary: Obsessions Come From Denial of Pleasure
Review: Chocolat tracks 40-days in the life of a sleepy little town in France., beginning with Mardi Gras, and ending with Easter Sunday.

Vianne Rocher -- suspected to be a witch -- and her daughter, Anouk, roll into town with the Mardi Gras carnival, decide to stay, and open a confiserie across the street from the town's Catholic Church and the eyes of its strict pastor, Pere Francis Reynaud.

Alternately told from the point of view of both Vianne and Pere Reynaud, the story deftly explores the inherent conflicts between following "the letter of the law" and "the spirit of the law" with regard to the church's teachings. Harris does a wonderful job with the character development of the townspeople, weaving in a close examination of the concepts of friendship, obsession, pride, and asceticism.

By the end of the novel you come to understand the fine line we all walk when we deny ourselves of pleasure, and consequently end up making the object of denial an obsession.

This is a positively FUN book to read. You will find yourself laughing aloud (or at least smiling broadly) throughout. Harris' prose is lush without being flowery as she drops you, like the protagonist, into a microcosm where the magic of confectionaries does seem able to solve nearly every problem.

As with most books, this is way better than the movie version, which didn't dare to project such a direly hypocritical view of the church and its oft-misguided followers.

Rating:
Summary: A Magic, Mystical Tale of Freedom Versus Religion's Tyranny
Review: I read this book, and then rented the video. I made a mistake. This book stands on its own, as one of the most enchanting I've read. The movie is a pale imitation.
The author's use of descriptive adjectives surprasses any book I can recall. I found myself enthralled and unable to stop reading. (I also found myself with a very strong craving for chocolate).
As a retired Episcopal Priest I was enthralled by the battle between the Priest and the Heroine. (I laughed so loudly at religion and the institutional church's narrow and unholy view of life and reality). My wife is now reading this delightful novel, because she hadn't heard me laugh like that in some time.
It is indeed a work which does not provide all the answers, and rightly so. I hope the author does a sequel. I will read it hot off the press.
Meanwhile, I think I'll get myself another helping of candy!

Rating:
Summary: Intelligent, poignant, warm, cute and engaging
Review: I think Chocolat became my favorite book immediately after I finished it. It is a pleasure to read if you have or have not seen the film based on it (the book is even better than the film). Joanne Harris is a wonderful author, capable of conveying excellent character development, imagery and sensual experience. Chocolat will be one of the most pleasant reading experiences you've ever had. It is on one level, entertaining, on another it is philosophically and politically engaging in a way that is not preachy nor confrontational; but rather brings the reader into contemplating the issues of seeking meaning and confronting prejudice in a very uplifting manner. There are a number of different elements to the novel than will be found in the film, of course, and it is interesting to see the differences, though the general feel is the same. Harris is such a skillful writer, and I encourage you to read all of her novels if you have a chance. I apologize if my reviewing skills are not as good.

Rating:
Summary: Liked the First Half
Review: As with Joanne Harris' other books, I really didn't get any sense of "France" with "Chocolat" so I was a little disappointed with the setting, but that was okay; fictional places can often be more fun than real ones.

The first half of "Chocolat" seemed light and fun, a fantasy of sorts, with the most delectable descriptions of chocolates thrown in for good measure. Most of the characters were interesting (though I did feel Armande to be rather shallow), and the dark element of good versus evil was quite enticing.

During the second half of the book, however, things just seemed to unravel...piece by piece by piece. First, Harris introduced new characters (one in particular) and the entire focus of the book seemed to crumble. The huge battle between good versus evil, which Harris had spent many pages setting up dissolved when the priest (for reasons never made known) simply left the village. Vienne, the protagonist of "Chocolat," did something that seemed so completely out of character, something that seemed to show she wasn't the friend we'd been led to believe she was, that I began to actively dislike her. Her betrayal of Josephine's trust was quite disappointing.

Had "Chocolat," in the second half, developed into the book it promised to become in the first half, it would have been both delightful and charming. The sad fact is, it didn't and I came away from the book puzzled and dissatisfied. Why didn't Harris continue to develop the charming fantasy she had worked so hard to set up? When I reached the end of "Chocolat" I definitely felt I'd finished a different book from the one I'd begun. And the one I'd finished was the inferior, by far. I felt this was a shame, since the beginning had been quite delightful. I do intend on renting the video; I think this may be a case where I'll actually like the movie more.