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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47401.Chocolat?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Chocolat" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170347047m/47401.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47401.Chocolat?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Chocolat</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9432.Joanne_Harris">Joanne Harris</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/32863053?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 3 of 5 stars "Weeds and wheat cannot grow peacefully together. Any gardener could tell you the same thing." The story is told in two voices. One of the narrators is Vianne Rocher. She and her little daughter Anouk are wanderers and have happened upon a tiny town, where they decide to live for a while. Vianne opens La Céleste Praline, a chocolaterie artisinale. 
 
 The story's other narrator is the town priest, Father Reynaud. Father Reynaud is threatened by Vianne's presence, by her refusal to attend church services, and the pagan stories little Anouk tells the other children.
 
 The story drama centers around the tension between Vianne and Reynaud. The more her chocolaterie prospers, the more Reynaud starves himself. From one of Reynaud's chapters near the end of the book: "Physical pleasure is the crack into which the devil sends his roots. I avoid sweet scents. I eat a single meal a day, and then only the plainest and most flavorless of foods." 
 
 Contrast that thought from Reynaud with Vianne's life. In a chapter describing a birthday party, Vianne's descriptions of the food fill pages. An example: "I bring them out like long-lost friends. Soupe de tomates a la gasconne, served with fresh basil and a slice of tartelette meridonale, made on biscuit-thin pate brisee and lush with flavors of olive oil and anchovy and the rich local tomatoes, garnished with olives and roasted slowly to produce a concentration of flavors that seems almost impossible." 
 
 The book does not paint a pretty picture of organized religion, but is very much about good and evil, or pleasure and piety. Neither character is perfect (Reynaud or Vianne). From the beginning, Reynaud's over-zealous and hypocritical piety repulse. But as the story progresses, it becomes clear that Vianne's philosophy, "happiness is the only thing that matters" is impossible, too. She has her own demons and in addition to the oppositional nature of her relationship with Reynaud, it becomes clear that their stories are also somewhat parallel. Both are running from the past. Reynaud holds regular conversations with "mon père", a priest from his past to whom he reveals his concerns. Vianne realizes that she runs not only from her own demons but from her dead mother's demons, too. 
 
 I enjoy books about food. In my opinion, "Like Water for Chocolate" was better (more sensual, less haunted), but I think that if you enjoyed "Like Water for Chocolate" then you will probably eat this book up, too. 
 
 The book is quite different than the movie (esp the Johnny Depp/Juliette Binoche love story). 
 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/318380?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Brenda's review
rating:

bookshelves: fiction

"Weeds and wheat cannot grow peacefully together. Any gardener could tell you the same thing." The story is told in two voices. One of the narrators is Vianne Rocher. She and her little daughter Anouk are wanderers and have happened upon a tiny town, where they decide to live for a while. Vianne opens La Céleste Praline, a chocolaterie artisinale.

The story's other narrator is the town priest, Father Reynaud. Father Reynaud is threatened by Vianne's presence, by her refusal to attend church services, and the pagan stories little Anouk tells the other children.

The story drama centers around the tension between Vianne and Reynaud. The more her chocolaterie prospers, the more Reynaud starves himself. From one of Reynaud's chapters near the end of the book: "Physical pleasure is the crack into which the devil sends his roots. I avoid sweet scents. I eat a single meal a day, and then only the plainest and most flavorless of foods."

Contrast that thought from...more "Weeds and wheat cannot grow peacefully together. Any gardener could tell you the same thing." The story is told in two voices. One of the narrators is Vianne Rocher. She and her little daughter Anouk are wanderers and have happened upon a tiny town, where they decide to live for a while. Vianne opens La Céleste Praline, a chocolaterie artisinale.

The story's other narrator is the town priest, Father Reynaud. Father Reynaud is threatened by Vianne's presence, by her refusal to attend church services, and the pagan stories little Anouk tells the other children.

The story drama centers around the tension between Vianne and Reynaud. The more her chocolaterie prospers, the more Reynaud starves himself. From one of Reynaud's chapters near the end of the book: "Physical pleasure is the crack into which the devil sends his roots. I avoid sweet scents. I eat a single meal a day, and then only the plainest and most flavorless of foods."

Contrast that thought from Reynaud with Vianne's life. In a chapter describing a birthday party, Vianne's descriptions of the food fill pages. An example: "I bring them out like long-lost friends. Soupe de tomates a la gasconne, served with fresh basil and a slice of tartelette meridonale, made on biscuit-thin pate brisee and lush with flavors of olive oil and anchovy and the rich local tomatoes, garnished with olives and roasted slowly to produce a concentration of flavors that seems almost impossible."

The book does not paint a pretty picture of organized religion, but is very much about good and evil, or pleasure and piety. Neither character is perfect (Reynaud or Vianne). From the beginning, Reynaud's over-zealous and hypocritical piety repulse. But as the story progresses, it becomes clear that Vianne's philosophy, "happiness is the only thing that matters" is impossible, too. She has her own demons and in addition to the oppositional nature of her relationship with Reynaud, it becomes clear that their stories are also somewhat parallel. Both are running from the past. Reynaud holds regular conversations with "mon père", a priest from his past to whom he reveals his concerns. Vianne realizes that she runs not only from her own demons but from her dead mother's demons, too.

I enjoy books about food. In my opinion, "Like Water for Chocolate" was better (more sensual, less haunted), but I think that if you enjoyed "Like Water for Chocolate" then you will probably eat this book up, too.

The book is quite different than the movie (esp the Johnny Depp/Juliette Binoche love story).
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