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A review by roberthekm
Chocolat by Joanne Harris
3.0
One of my mum's favourite books... sorry mum.
Joanne Harris is capable of writing good prose and the set up of this book is interesting; indulgence vs piety. Unfortunately it doesn't develop in a particularly interesting or unexpected way and ends up feeling a bit hollow and redundant. Enjoy your life, appears to be the ultimate message, nothing I particularly disagree with but it is a bit trite.
Similarly, the characters feel rather one dimensional, playing out their roles in fairly expected ways. Armande, an old woman who has diabetes and wants to die by eating chocolate, is the most interesting and entertaining character. The questions she raises about what it means to lead a good life and what obligations, if any, you have to the people around you almost push me into liking this book. I appreciated especially the description of the final party the protagonist holds for her, not just in terms of the sensory details of the event but also the toll it takes on the protagonist to prepare this. It really aligns with the feminist ideas of the book, since often books overlook the 'women's' work it takes to put on an event of such a magnitude. Even as it shows how rewarding it can be to be of service to others, its never easy.
Speaking of our witchy protagonist, the magical elements of this book felt a bit unnecessary. People call this magical realism, but it behaves more like traditional fantasy; magical elements invading a mundane world rather than simply being a part of it. It feels awkward to combine these elements with an otherwise ordinary world and often just felt like the author injecting a greater sense importance to the story than was necessary. Ultimately I wasn't very attached to Vianne, but I did enjoy how she was an indirect influence on the people around her and often wasn't very present during the climatic moments of the book.
Joanne Harris is capable of writing good prose and the set up of this book is interesting; indulgence vs piety. Unfortunately it doesn't develop in a particularly interesting or unexpected way and ends up feeling a bit hollow and redundant. Enjoy your life, appears to be the ultimate message, nothing I particularly disagree with but it is a bit trite.
Similarly, the characters feel rather one dimensional, playing out their roles in fairly expected ways. Armande, an old woman who has diabetes and wants to die by eating chocolate, is the most interesting and entertaining character. The questions she raises about what it means to lead a good life and what obligations, if any, you have to the people around you almost push me into liking this book. I appreciated especially the description of the final party the protagonist holds for her, not just in terms of the sensory details of the event but also the toll it takes on the protagonist to prepare this. It really aligns with the feminist ideas of the book, since often books overlook the 'women's' work it takes to put on an event of such a magnitude. Even as it shows how rewarding it can be to be of service to others, its never easy.
Speaking of our witchy protagonist, the magical elements of this book felt a bit unnecessary. People call this magical realism, but it behaves more like traditional fantasy; magical elements invading a mundane world rather than simply being a part of it. It feels awkward to combine these elements with an otherwise ordinary world and often just felt like the author injecting a greater sense importance to the story than was necessary. Ultimately I wasn't very attached to Vianne, but I did enjoy how she was an indirect influence on the people around her and often wasn't very present during the climatic moments of the book.