Chocolat: (Chocolat 1)

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Harris has indicated that several of the characters were influenced by individuals in her life: [1] Her son forms the basis for the young Anouk, including his imaginary rabbit, Pantoufle. Harris' strong-willed and independent great-grandmother influenced her portrayal of both Vianne and the elderly Armande. A surprising yet fitting denouement caps this deftly told tale of lust, greed and love. Francophiles will be drawn to the evocative descriptions of daily village life, while gourmands revel in the mouth-watering descriptions of chocolate preparation. "Chocolat" is a heart warming and enjoyable story. The only downfall: the intense chocolate cravings the whole time you read! Once, when the women and the gypsies had some kind of a party on the rafts, the Roux’s one started to burn. Roux couldn’t extinguish the fire. After that the gypsies went out of the bank and only Roux stayed to get to know who had burnt his home. There are so many layers to this book. It is a story of a strong woman who has a different way of living her life. This fact creates fear in many people, especially those who approach life in a rigid, unforgiving manner. The local priest believes from the beginning that Vianne is an enemy of decency; he creates for himself the task of exposing her as the evil witch he believes her to be.

Vianne, having come to the town at the Lent, starts to set up a chocolate café there. This, and the fact that she doesn’t go to the church, brings on the hostility of the fanatically devotional cure. But the woman doesn’t pay attention to him. She has in mind to stay here for as much time, as she wants. Charles de Lint praised the novel, saying "Harris's prose is an absolute delight" comparing Chocolat to Like Water for Chocolate. [3] Setting [ edit ] The National Youth Ballet staged this marvellous version of CHOCOLAT in 2011, using Rachel Portman’s original music from the film score, and choreographed by the young (and already very talented) Andrew McNicol. This scandalises Francis Reynaud, the village priest, and his supporters. As tensions run high, the community is increasingly divided. As Easter approaches the ritual of the Church is pitted against the indulgence of chocolate, and Father Reynaud and Vianne Rocher face an inevitable showdown.

Book Summary

When he realizes that Vianne intends to open a chocolate shop in place of the old bakery, thereby tempting the churchgoers to over-indulgence, Reynaud’s disapproval increases. Claire’s perfidious husband and absentee father to Luc, not much is mentioned about him in the novel save for him being an incorrigible flirt and incapable of keeping is hands off other women. Luc Clairmont Imagine if she’d lived a normal life: a house, a son, a husband, a job in an indie bookshop. Not a very happy life, but a normal, boring, suburban life in a busy part of London.

My only issue in terms of description, is Harris’s intensive use of French words and names for things, names she does not explain fully in the text. Of course, Harris herself, as a French teacher who is also half French is naturally fluent in the language, but to those of us who aren’t, a word or two of what pain d'épices is for instance would have eased occasional fits of linguistic confusion. Indeed I was fortunate to be reading the audio book of Chocolat, since trying to decipher idiosyncratic French spelling in a written novel would not have been enjoyable. This also unfortunately made several elements, such as the rhymes Vianne sings to Anouk, and several of Vianne’s recipes a little impenetrable and thus lessened the impact they had on the plot, which was a shame, since when she does take the time to describe, rather than name the goodies Vianne is working on it’s a gastronomical treat with even Vianne’s surname reminiscent of a common chocolate brand. Vianne and her six year-old daughter Anouk drift across Europe following the north wind, like Vianne's mother before her. In 1959 they arrive in a quiet French village, overseen by mayor the Comte de Reynaud at the start of Lent. Vianne opens a chocolate shop; despite not fitting in well with the townspeople, begins to make headway with some of the villagers to come to her shop. Reynaud, who will not admit his wife left him, speaks out against Vianne for tempting the people during Lent. Though Christianity receives the most unexamined negative portrait in the book, it is unfortunately not Harris only major assumption. When river gypsies arrive, of course they are all hard working eccentrics with an alternative lifestyle and only the miserable gang of small town conservatives would be against them. Similarly, Harris shows a quite literal blind spot with Armande, who it is revealed is in conflict with her daughter because she suffers diabetes and is losing her vision, and so (apparently), must leave her house and move into an old people’s home. When I consider that my own grandmother was totally blind and lived alone for twenty years, this unexamined assumption on both Harris and Armande’s part seems downright offensive, especially when it leads to a debate about Armande’s right to die with dignity. Indeed nobody (including the supposedly supernaturally insightful Vianne), even questions the idea that Armande might be able to live independently let alone be happy whilst blind, never mind that anyone newly blind would probably be better in a familiar home environment anyway. As with her one spite fits all depiction of Christianity, Harris could easily have avoided this pitfall by simply giving Armande something painful and genuinely debilitating, such as Alzheimer’s disease, which would have been a far more reasonable ground for Harris argument concerning death and dying. Naturally feathers are ruffled and a lot of the locals give Vianne a wide berth. However there are some that make it their business to give their opinion on Vianne and her way of living. Mainly the Priest and some of his more devout believers.It was ok. That pretty much sums up my feelings toward this book. There were parts I liked - mainly the side characters like Armande, and her grandson Luc. I liked Josephine and her storyline. I loved the little French town, Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, that Vianne and her daughter Anouk found themselves in after the carnival was over. She was there to open a little candy shop. She called it La Celeste Praline Père Reynaud pays Vianne a visit: it is Sunday, and he didn’t see Vianne or her daughter at church. Vianne explains, “We don’t attend, you know.” When the priest learns that Vianne is unmarried, his outrage turns to horror. Despite shifting sentiment in the town, Reynaud remains staunch in his abstinence of eating any chocolate. On the Saturday evening before Easter, Reynaud sees Caroline, to whom he is attracted, leaving the chocolaterie and is devastated. He breaks into the shop that night, smashing the special window display for the Easter festival. After a morsel of chocolate falls on his lip, he devours much of the chocolate in the window before collapsing in tears and falling asleep. The next morning, Vianne wakes him and gives him a drink to help him. Reynaud apologizes for his behavior. The town's young priest Père Henri gives a sermon emphasizing the importance of humanity over divinity.