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A review by willowy
Chocolat by Joanne Harris
5.0
After being a fan of the movie for years, I finally decided to give the book a try, and was pleasantly surprised with how much I loved it. I admit the book and movie are different stylistically, but both are immensely enjoyable.
Chocolat is about Vianne Rocher and her daughter Anouk -along with imaginary rabbit Pantoufle- who move to Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, a village in France. She opens up a chocolaterie, "La Céleste Praline", and is almost immediately condemned by the local priest, Francis Reynaud, and his followers. Vianne is a witch, although she would never call herself that, and has a special talent in being able to "guess" people's favorite chocolates. Chocolat is about sin and temptation, and about how food can change us and even bring us joy. I loved Vianne, and Anouk, who was intuitive for such a small child, and even the secondary characters. My favorites were Guillaume, a man who struggles with his immense love and devotion to his dying dog, Armande Voizin, and elderly woman with a love for scandalous underthings and is a fellow witch, her grandson Luc, who has a presetent stutter but can read Rimbaud beautifully, and Roux, a man who, along with others, lives in a house boat and travels down the Tannes, with hair like a struck match and a heavy Marseille accent.
I wanted to hate Reynaud, but couldn't, and knew that Joanne Harris had done her job well in making a multi-faceted and human villain. Vianne herself is prejudiced against religion, and should learn that religion can be a beautiful thing, complex as those who practice it. A enjoyable book with mouthwatering descriptions, a must-read.
Chocolat is about Vianne Rocher and her daughter Anouk -along with imaginary rabbit Pantoufle- who move to Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, a village in France. She opens up a chocolaterie, "La Céleste Praline", and is almost immediately condemned by the local priest, Francis Reynaud, and his followers. Vianne is a witch, although she would never call herself that, and has a special talent in being able to "guess" people's favorite chocolates. Chocolat is about sin and temptation, and about how food can change us and even bring us joy. I loved Vianne, and Anouk, who was intuitive for such a small child, and even the secondary characters. My favorites were Guillaume, a man who struggles with his immense love and devotion to his dying dog, Armande Voizin, and elderly woman with a love for scandalous underthings and is a fellow witch, her grandson Luc, who has a presetent stutter but can read Rimbaud beautifully, and Roux, a man who, along with others, lives in a house boat and travels down the Tannes, with hair like a struck match and a heavy Marseille accent.
I wanted to hate Reynaud, but couldn't, and knew that Joanne Harris had done her job well in making a multi-faceted and human villain. Vianne herself is prejudiced against religion, and should learn that religion can be a beautiful thing, complex as those who practice it. A enjoyable book with mouthwatering descriptions, a must-read.