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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
This book was darker than I expected, and much more cynical. Still, the characters were well-drawn and the book nicely balances the viewpoints of both Vianne and Reynaud. I loved Armande's character and Josephine, and I also loved the very sensual descriptions of the sights and sounds in the village, and of course the aromas and flavors of the chocoaltes. I was afraid I would be disappointed in the ending, but at the last minute it took an ambiguous turn that I found oddly satisfying. However, the whole idea of turning conventional wisdom in the little village upside-down is executed a little too neatly I think - the lines between 'good' and 'wicked' are a little too clearly drawn, with no shades of grey.
I watched the movie, Chocolat, several years ago, so I recently decided it was time to read the book. Perhaps I wasn't paying close enough attention when I watched the movie, but I expected something very different when I sat down to read the book. I expected the book to be more... romantic, sensual... Instead I found it to be an exploration of the effects of intolerance. Harris takes the intolerance so rife in our world and concentrates it in one small community showing how limiting we can be when we refuse to see beyond that which we've always been taught. She deftly explores the effects of exclusionary behavior and the harm of not bothering to get to know other people. With the story set around a newcomer who opens a chocolate store during Lent and the priest who opposes not only the chocolate shop but her mere presence, the town seems divided down the middle with people willing to blind themselves to other people's pain in order to maintain the status quo of their lives. I'm not sure the book was intended to make me feel sad, but it often did because it so aptly displayed how divisive human beings can be toward one another while wrapping their judgment up in a warped version of religious righteousness or even concern. Chocolat is a thought-provoking, entertaining book with characters that touch the heart and take up residence in one's imagination.
3.5, anche se per tutta la lettura sono stata sicura che ne avrei date 4. Non credo mi abbia convinta del tutto la piega che hanno preso gli eventi, o meglio quella che non hanno preso.
E poi il vento, il vento di carnevale soffiava ancora, portando con sé l'odore indefinito di fritto, di zucchero filato e di polvere da sparo, l'odore caldo e pungente delle stagioni che cambiano, che fa prudere le mani e battere più forte il cuore... Per una volta, dunque, ci fermiamo. Per una volta. Finché il vento non girerà.
Wonderful love story, plus it leaves you dreaming about Johnny Depp :) I just happen to have been French in a past life, so it was great for me.
This book has been on my to-be-read shelf for so long it took quite a while to trace where and when I bought it! I apparently picked it up way back in October 2012 when I helped out at the Somerville Public Library book sale! I’m glad I grabbed a copy. I own a copy of the film, but for some reason I never realized they adapted it from a novel!
Add in that when random.org selected it as my next book and I prepared to read it I found out it was a trilogy, my mind was BLOWN! I was a little grumpy at first, because I had a plan worked out to read more of my to-be-read shelf and was trying really hard not to add more in between the books, but I do love a good trilogy! I plan to read two and three, The Girl With No Shadow and Peaches for Father Francis, in the next few weeks and am VERY excited about them!
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
Add in that when random.org selected it as my next book and I prepared to read it I found out it was a trilogy, my mind was BLOWN! I was a little grumpy at first, because I had a plan worked out to read more of my to-be-read shelf and was trying really hard not to add more in between the books, but I do love a good trilogy! I plan to read two and three, The Girl With No Shadow and Peaches for Father Francis, in the next few weeks and am VERY excited about them!
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
a re-read, as I have the third book in the series to go and I read the first two so long ago I need a refresher. I gave it three stars when I first posted it...I guess that stands. I like this book, but I don't quite love it. The plot is really rather cliched, a free spirit comes to a small town dominated by an uptight quasi-villain, in this case the priest, faces him down and helps and uplifts all who come in contact with her. Oh, and there is the convenient Perfect Man...he's a gypsy nomad, but an HONEST CLEAN TIDY one who picks up litter. What I like about it is the writing. Her descriptions are very evocative, she really does set you in the scene. (And you will suffer less if you eat while reading this.) I also tried utilizing the fact that there is a bit of magical realism at work here when my practical side started asking how on earth she had the money and the sources for all that kitchen equipment and those ingredients, and how on earth she made all that candy, etc. herself in such short periods of time. (That still bugs me, but I pictured the pots that stir themselves in the Weasley kitchen at work)