Scan barcode
amyableamy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
jgresh's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ladygodivas's review against another edition
4.0
what a great read! i was reading this book at the same time as the hunchback of notre dame and was surprised at how many similarities there were.
it's amazing how food was described by the author. the writing was smooth as hot chocolate.
i have not seen the film but i will soon.
i'll be adding this to my list of comfort reads.
it's amazing how food was described by the author. the writing was smooth as hot chocolate.
i have not seen the film but i will soon.
i'll be adding this to my list of comfort reads.
kellygoesgeocaching's review against another edition
4.0
Lovely is the best word I can find for Chocolat. It was an easy read and had subtle changes in the plot to that of the movie which were, I think, nicer. I especially enjoyed the ending of the book more than the movie.
mena_bh's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
rightingale's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
susandelgado's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
katiegilley's review against another edition
5.0
I've seen the movie probably about 5 times. I tend to watch it on days when I've called out sick and just want to curl up on the couch or in bed and be carried away. This book brought the same kind of comfort, but ten-fold. Of course, the book is slightly different than the movie in little ways. The biggest (and most interesting to me) is the way the priest is protrayed in the movie - a clumsy, awkward, and naive newbie - and the "villain" is the town mayor (or the French equivalent). This is not the case in the book. In Harris' original version there is no mayor, and the priest is the "villain." I can only assume that Hollywood made those changes to avoid controversy and I find it interesting (and a bit amusing). returnreturnIt was wonderful to get some back story on Vianne and Anouk - we learn about Vianne's mother and a slight mystery concerning the truth regarding that. And let me tell you, this past week I've craved more chocolate than ever before!returnreturnI read in some thread on LT that someone thought that the movie was set in the past, but this book surely hints that it is present day. However, I think the movie might cause us to go astray, because Guillame is smitten for the mourning widow, who lost her husband during the war. Vianne says but the war was 20 years ago, and Guillame responds with "no, the first war." Which I was thinking made the movie set in the 60s? I'm not too sure (my history and math skills are a bit sketchy).returnreturnAll in all - this is a wonderful book!
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
First in the Chocolat fiction series set in France and revolving around Vianne Rocher.
My Take
I hadn’t realized that the movie Chocolat was a Joanne Harris novel, and I was determined to read it. Then I learned that Peaches for Father Francis was third in the series. A whole series of which Chocolat was merely the beginning! Now circumstance has allowed me to start at the beginning with Chocolat. To learn how close the novel is to the film. To be able to progress on to the second in the series, The Girl with No Shadow and learn how Vianne and Anouk go from here to there.
Now that I’ve read Chocolat, I feel a need to watch the film, and read the book again. And I’m sure I’ll want to keep alternating forever and ever, for Joanne Harris is a brilliant writer. A must-buy writer with whom you’ll never go wrong. Harris pulls you in to the scent and feel of the story. Well, yes, chocolate will do that to you! But she makes me see Pantoufle and feel Anouk’s frustrations. I can see how very merry Vianne is, how determined she is to stay for once, how much she enjoys life. She is indeed a formidable foe for one who is so unChristian as the village priest. A man for whom pride is his most overweening sin, one he does not recognize. The bigotry and judgmental attitudes of the unhappy ones.
You can’t help but hate him and Caro, and yet Harris makes it’s easy to see how pogroms and inquisitions arose and chased out people who didn’t conform as she provides the words that help me to empathize with their viewpoint. It’s terrifying how people can interpret another’s actions so poorly and be so intent on destroying. All in the name of community! It’s lucky that the majority of the citizens of Lansquenet were on Vianne’s side.
Thinking about the villagers, I realize how everyday their lives were. Worries about the harvest, one’s health, love for family, envy, the lack of confidence and how it affects one’s outlook and views about others. It’s the familiar, the ordinary and when the expected is challenged by Vianne’s presence...oh, look out. Her cheeriness and unexpected behavior cause others to fear for themselves, to lash out. To want to destroy. It doesn’t matter who else it might hurt, as long as the one blowing life up can go back to his or her routine.
What is it with a priest who can condone a man beating his wife, but thinks she is so wicked because she leaves him? Why does Caroline want her mother to move into the local nursing home so badly?
It’s both today and the past as Vianne has a foot in both. She surges forward, living life today, but her doubts and worries pull her back to her memories of her mother.
It’s interesting that those who enjoyed people and life were the one who were happy while the others...ah, they were so very unhappy...
The Story
A single mother, a witch, and her child blow into the village one day with a desire to put down roots. To open a business. One that makes people happy. A major catastrophe for the village priest as he knows that she is of the devil with her tempting wares and questioning child.
A few see her as a challenge to their authority whether it’s within the church or in a family, and they are determined to force Vianne Rocher out.
The Characters
There are hints about Vianne Rocher. That she is magic, she is a witch, she is psychic, but nothing is ever confirmed. She’s a free spirit who loves life in all its fragrances. Anouk is her six-year-old daughter. Pantoufle is her not-completely-invisible rabbit friend.
Michel Roux is a river man who arrives on his barge, a man who used to be a builder in a past life. He and his friends—Zézette, Blanche, and Ahmed—are unwanted by some in the village. But not Armande, the sneak!
Joséphine Bonnet Muscat is married to Paul-Marie, the owner of the Café de la République, who beats her.
Father Francis Reynaud is the curé of the parish. Proud, too proud as can be seen in his embrace of the fasting for Lent. A man with a deep, dark secret.
Armande Voizin is an eighty-year-old woman with a love for life. Georges Clairmont is Caro’s husband. Caroline is Armande’s social-climbing daughter more interested in status than her mother. Luc is the grandson Armande is forbidden from seeing. Monsieur Cussonet is the doctor.
Narcisse owns a nursery. Joline Drou is a schoolteacher and Caro’s friend. Jeannot Drou is the son who befriends Anouk. Guillaume Duplessis is a retired schoolmaster who loves his dog, Charly. Monsieur Poitu runs the bakery. Other children include Lucie and Claudine.
Les Marauds is a region of narrow streets, a tiny slum near the river.
My Cover
The cover of the version I read is quite sedate, much like the village of Lansquenet. A subdued red background with a simple square inset of the village square bordered by a white mat and three lines as a prim bit of decoration. The title is white against a dark blue background with an old-fashioned banner effect on the ends, and it too is decorated with the same three lines, only these are in the red of the background. It’s the assorted doilies backing the title and its banner and supporting the bottom of the covert that provide the subtle flair, much like Armande’s red petticoat.
The title is the metaphor, the theme, for it’s Chocolat that permeates the air, titillates the taste buds, and pleasures the eye, bringing us joy in our lives.
My Take
I hadn’t realized that the movie Chocolat was a Joanne Harris novel, and I was determined to read it. Then I learned that Peaches for Father Francis was third in the series. A whole series of which Chocolat was merely the beginning! Now circumstance has allowed me to start at the beginning with Chocolat. To learn how close the novel is to the film. To be able to progress on to the second in the series, The Girl with No Shadow and learn how Vianne and Anouk go from here to there.
Now that I’ve read Chocolat, I feel a need to watch the film, and read the book again. And I’m sure I’ll want to keep alternating forever and ever, for Joanne Harris is a brilliant writer. A must-buy writer with whom you’ll never go wrong. Harris pulls you in to the scent and feel of the story. Well, yes, chocolate will do that to you! But she makes me see Pantoufle and feel Anouk’s frustrations. I can see how very merry Vianne is, how determined she is to stay for once, how much she enjoys life. She is indeed a formidable foe for one who is so unChristian as the village priest. A man for whom pride is his most overweening sin, one he does not recognize. The bigotry and judgmental attitudes of the unhappy ones.
You can’t help but hate him and Caro, and yet Harris makes it’s easy to see how pogroms and inquisitions arose and chased out people who didn’t conform as she provides the words that help me to empathize with their viewpoint. It’s terrifying how people can interpret another’s actions so poorly and be so intent on destroying. All in the name of community! It’s lucky that the majority of the citizens of Lansquenet were on Vianne’s side.
Thinking about the villagers, I realize how everyday their lives were. Worries about the harvest, one’s health, love for family, envy, the lack of confidence and how it affects one’s outlook and views about others. It’s the familiar, the ordinary and when the expected is challenged by Vianne’s presence...oh, look out. Her cheeriness and unexpected behavior cause others to fear for themselves, to lash out. To want to destroy. It doesn’t matter who else it might hurt, as long as the one blowing life up can go back to his or her routine.
What is it with a priest who can condone a man beating his wife, but thinks she is so wicked because she leaves him? Why does Caroline want her mother to move into the local nursing home so badly?
It’s both today and the past as Vianne has a foot in both. She surges forward, living life today, but her doubts and worries pull her back to her memories of her mother.
It’s interesting that those who enjoyed people and life were the one who were happy while the others...ah, they were so very unhappy...
The Story
A single mother, a witch, and her child blow into the village one day with a desire to put down roots. To open a business. One that makes people happy. A major catastrophe for the village priest as he knows that she is of the devil with her tempting wares and questioning child.
A few see her as a challenge to their authority whether it’s within the church or in a family, and they are determined to force Vianne Rocher out.
The Characters
There are hints about Vianne Rocher. That she is magic, she is a witch, she is psychic, but nothing is ever confirmed. She’s a free spirit who loves life in all its fragrances. Anouk is her six-year-old daughter. Pantoufle is her not-completely-invisible rabbit friend.
Michel Roux is a river man who arrives on his barge, a man who used to be a builder in a past life. He and his friends—Zézette, Blanche, and Ahmed—are unwanted by some in the village. But not Armande, the sneak!
Joséphine Bonnet Muscat is married to Paul-Marie, the owner of the Café de la République, who beats her.
Father Francis Reynaud is the curé of the parish. Proud, too proud as can be seen in his embrace of the fasting for Lent. A man with a deep, dark secret.
Armande Voizin is an eighty-year-old woman with a love for life. Georges Clairmont is Caro’s husband. Caroline is Armande’s social-climbing daughter more interested in status than her mother. Luc is the grandson Armande is forbidden from seeing. Monsieur Cussonet is the doctor.
Narcisse owns a nursery. Joline Drou is a schoolteacher and Caro’s friend. Jeannot Drou is the son who befriends Anouk. Guillaume Duplessis is a retired schoolmaster who loves his dog, Charly. Monsieur Poitu runs the bakery. Other children include Lucie and Claudine.
Les Marauds is a region of narrow streets, a tiny slum near the river.
My Cover
The cover of the version I read is quite sedate, much like the village of Lansquenet. A subdued red background with a simple square inset of the village square bordered by a white mat and three lines as a prim bit of decoration. The title is white against a dark blue background with an old-fashioned banner effect on the ends, and it too is decorated with the same three lines, only these are in the red of the background. It’s the assorted doilies backing the title and its banner and supporting the bottom of the covert that provide the subtle flair, much like Armande’s red petticoat.
The title is the metaphor, the theme, for it’s Chocolat that permeates the air, titillates the taste buds, and pleasures the eye, bringing us joy in our lives.
aok700's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.75