Chocolat
(Joanne Harris)
One of the few books that has worked equally as well as a film, though perhaps with not quite the impact of the written word. The innocence of the first chapters is masterfully contrasted as we move along, reaching dark voids in places and yet never letting up or releasing the reader for an instant. Here we have a light, slightly magical beginning ? a mother and daughter arriving in the smallest of country French villages with a simple mission to set up a chocolaterie ? in time for Easter. The simplest and fluffiest of plots. And yet the mystery creeps in with such a subtlety that you only really notice it afterwards ? the predictions of favourite chocolates; the matching of chocolate tastes with personalities ? and the gradual realisation that this stranger in town is ?mending? relationships wherever she goes, with logic, with charisma, with magic?
And yet, underneath all the soap-style relationship stuff and the popular psychology running on the surface, is a dark and powerful undercurrent of religious fanaticism. Slowly and ever so scarily, Harris lets this fanatical beast free and shows the dangers, the harm and the hurt that can be caused once this is let out of control. The book is brought sharply to staggering heights ? with all its characters playing major roles ? until justice ? or sense ? or logic (call it what you will) prevails and peace restored.
A comment on today?s society? Perhaps.
For you to decide.
Resumos Relacionados
- Charlie And The Chocolate Factory
- The Magic Cottage
- Pride And Prejudice
- Wuthering Heights
- Wild Magic
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