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jainandsdiary 's review for:
The Paris Novel
by Ruth Reichl
The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl is the story of Stella, who is working as a copy editor for Vanguard Press, a small publishing company in New York. She likes to spend her time in the comfort of her home and routine and adventure would be the last word in the dictionary of her life. Until her late mother, Celia, left a small legacy for her, and as per it, to have her will, Stella had to use the money to come to Paris. As simple as that! Thus begins the overwhelming adventure in the city of love and life, with the new people, appetite, lifestyle and life decisions. Read the book to be on the journey of self-discovery with Stella.
The book is divided into three parts- Séverine, Victorine and Stella, each part devoted to a woman and their discovery of identity! It comes out as a beautiful concept with the mismatch of emotions and feelings of food.
The beauty of the book lies in the details of the connection of Stella with food. The food is described stunningly and it was a beautiful journey for the readers parallelly with Stella's journey of finding the joy in food.
Apart from the food, the book will stay with me for the camaraderie of the people of Shakespeare and Company and the comfort it brings with it, but apart from that, it's forgettable at the front of characters and relationships.
However, I felt that the writing and story went too far ahead in the discovery of foods, paintings, and places in the city and did not leave much for the character development of any of the characters. Thus, when the book ends, we are only left with the memory of food and paintings but nothing concrete about the people and their journey and life. It also missed out heavily on exploring the complex and dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship, which we are only offered a glimpse of and could have been memorable if served more.
The book has some exceptional elements and concepts but it is a classic case of missed opportunity. It's not a disappointing story per se, but it feels like a disappointment because it could have been much better! Overall, it was a good one-time read for me, and it provided me with some good moments of comfort and calmness.
The book is divided into three parts- Séverine, Victorine and Stella, each part devoted to a woman and their discovery of identity! It comes out as a beautiful concept with the mismatch of emotions and feelings of food.
The beauty of the book lies in the details of the connection of Stella with food. The food is described stunningly and it was a beautiful journey for the readers parallelly with Stella's journey of finding the joy in food.
Apart from the food, the book will stay with me for the camaraderie of the people of Shakespeare and Company and the comfort it brings with it, but apart from that, it's forgettable at the front of characters and relationships.
However, I felt that the writing and story went too far ahead in the discovery of foods, paintings, and places in the city and did not leave much for the character development of any of the characters. Thus, when the book ends, we are only left with the memory of food and paintings but nothing concrete about the people and their journey and life. It also missed out heavily on exploring the complex and dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship, which we are only offered a glimpse of and could have been memorable if served more.
The book has some exceptional elements and concepts but it is a classic case of missed opportunity. It's not a disappointing story per se, but it feels like a disappointment because it could have been much better! Overall, it was a good one-time read for me, and it provided me with some good moments of comfort and calmness.