Joanne Harris

Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

Maryland

When the exotic stranger Vianne Rocher arrives in the old French village of Lansquenet and opens a chocolate boutique called “La Celeste Praline” directly across the square from the church, Father Reynaud identifies her as a serious danger to his flock. It is the beginning of Lent: the traditional season of self-denial. The priest says she’ll be out of business by Easter. To make matters worse, Vianne does not go to church and has a penchant for superstition. Like her mother, she can read Tarot cards. But she begins to win over customers with her smiles, her intuition for everyone’s favourites, and her delightful confections. Her shop provides a place, too, for secrets to be whispered, grievances aired. She begins to shake up the rigid morality of the community. Vianne’s plans for an Easter Chocolate Festival divide the whole community. Can the solemnity of the Church compare with the pagan passion of a chocolate éclair? For the first time, here is a novel in which chocolate enjoys its true importance, emerging as an agent of transformation. Rich, clever, and mischievous, reminiscent of a folk tale or fable, this is a triumphant read with a memorable character at its heart. Says Harris: “You might see [Vianne] as an archetype or a mythical figure. I prefer to see her as the lone gunslinger who blows into the town, has a showdown with the man in the black hat, then moves on relentless. But on another level she is a perfectly real person with real insecurities and a very human desire for love and acceptance. Her qualities too — kindness, love, tolerance — are very human.” Vianne and her young daughter Anouk, come into town on Shrove Tuesday. “Carnivals make us uneasy,” says Harris, “because of what they represent: the residual memory of blood sacrifice (it is after all from the word "carne" that the term arises), of pagan celebration. And they represent a loss of inhibition; carnival time is a time at which almost anything is possible.” The book became an international best-seller, and was optioned to film quickly. The Oscar-nominated movie, with its star-studded cast including Juliette Binoche (The English Patient) and Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love), was directed by Lasse Hallstrom, whose previous film The Cider House Rules (based on a John Irving novel) also looks at issues of community and moral standards, though in a less lighthearted vein. The idea for the book came from a comment her husband made one day while he was immersed in a football game on TV. “It was a throwaway comment, designed to annoy and it did. It was along the lines of...Chocolate is to women what football is to men…” The idea stuck, and Harris began thinking that “people have these conflicting feelings about chocolate, and that a lot of people who have very little else in common relate to chocolate in more or less the same kind of way. It became a kind of challenge to see exactly how much of a story I could get which was uniquely centred around chocolate.” Other Books Five Quarters of the Orange Blackberry Wine Sleep, Pale Sister The Evil Seed Suggested Reading John Allemang The Importance of Lunch Peter Mayle A Year in Provence; Encore Provence Patrick Süskind Perfume Jeannette Winterson Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

Chocolat

d669e220-9b10-4410-a770-82b4ed32f0b8-1

Massachusetts

(Chocolat 1)

Lose yourself in Chocolat - the mesmerising and heart-warming bestseller that celebrates kindness, courage and chocolate. Multi-million copy bestselling author Joanne Harris's delightful novel set in rural France is perfect for fans of Victoria Hislop, Fiona Valpy, Maggie O'Farrell and Rachel Joyce.

'A feel-good book of the first order. One to curl up with... Read it' -- OBSERVER
'Sensuous and thought-provoking... subtle and brilliant' -- DAILY TELEGRAPH
'You are transported to another world. It's perfect escapism.' -- ***** Reader review
'A wonderful story told by a world-class storyteller.' -- ***** Reader review
'I became totally immersed in this story. I loved it.' -- ***** Reader review

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In the small French village of Lansquenet, nothing much has changed in a hundred years. Then an exotic stranger, Vianne Rocher, blows in on the changing wind with her young daughter, and opens a chocolate boutique directly opposite the church. Soon the villagers cannot keep away, for Vianne can divine their most hidden desires.

But it's the beginning of Lent, the season of abstinence, and Father Reynaud denounces her as a serious moral danger to his flock. Perhaps even a witch.

If Vianne's chocolaterie is to survive, it will take kindness, courage and a little bit of magic...

Chocolat is Joanne Harris's first book about Vianne Rocher, and was turned into the Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. The story of Vianne and her daughters continues in The Lollipop Shoes, Peaches for Monsieur le Cure, and The Strawberry Thief.

A Novel

Even before it was adapted into the Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp, Joanne Harris' New York Times bestselling novel Chocolat entranced readers with its mix of hedonism, whimsy, and, of course, chocolate. In tiny Lansquenet, where nothing much has changed in a hundred years, beautiful newcomer Vianne Rocher and her exquisite chocolate shop arrive and instantly begin to play havoc with Lenten vows. Each box of luscious bonbons comes with a free gift: Vianne's uncanny perception of its buyer's private discontents and a clever, caring cure for them. Is she a witch? Soon the parish no longer cares, as it abandons itself to temptation, happiness, and a dramatic face-off between Easter solemnity and the pagan gaiety of a chocolate festival. Chocolat's every page offers a description of chocolate to melt in the mouths of chocoholics, francophiles, armchair gourmets, cookbook readers, and lovers of passion everywhere. It's a must for anyone who craves an escapist read, and is a bewitching gift for any holiday.

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Category - Fiction / General Fiction

Format - Paperback

Condition - Good

Listed - 5 months ago

Ships From - Maryland

Est. Publication Date - Nov 2000

Chocolat

ISBN: 9780385658119

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More copies of this book

This copy is sold, but you can find more here!

Category - Fiction / General Fiction

Format - Paperback

Condition - Good

Listed - 5 months ago

Ships From - Maryland

Est. Publication Date - Nov 2000

Chocolat

ISBN: 9780385658119

Publisher Description

Chocolat

By:

$4.00

Meet the seller

Discover more

Chocolat

By: Joanne Harris

Pango Buyer Protection

More from this seller

Additional titles by Joanne Harris

'Chocolat' readers also enjoyed:

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