Book-It '10! Book #29
The Fifty Books Challenge, year two! This was a library request.
Title: The Girl With No Shadow by Joanne Harris
Details: Copyright 2008, HarperCollins
Synopsis (By Way of Front Flap): " Be careful what you wish for . . .
Hailed as an "irresistible confection" (Entertainment Weekly), "as sweet, rich and utterly satisfying as a fine truffle" (Wall Street Journal), and "an amazement of riches" (New York Times), Chocolat won the hearts of readers and critics everywhere. At last, Joanne Harris returns with The Girl with No Shadow, an exquisite treat that continues the story that began in her international bestseller.
Since she was a little girl, the wind has dictated every move Vianne Rocher has made, buffeting her from place to place, from the small French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes to the crowded streets of Paris. Cloaked in a new identity, that of widow Yanne Charbonneau, she opens a chocolaterie on a small Montmartre street, determined to still the wind at last and keep her daughters, Anouk and the baby, Rosette, safe.
Her new home above the chocolate shop offers calm and quiet: no red sachets hang by the door; no sparks of magic fill the air; no Indian skirts with bells hang in her closet. Conformity brings with it anonymity- and peace. There is even Thierry, the stolid businessman who wants to take care of Yanne and the children. On the cusp of adolescence, an increasingly rebellious and restless Anouk does not understand. But soon the weathervane turns . . . and into their lives blows the charming and enigmatic Zozie de l'Alba. And everything begins to change.
Zozie offers the brightness Yanne's life needs. Anouk, too, is dazzled by this vivacious woman with the lollipop-red shoes who seems to understand her better than anyone- especially her mother. Yet this friendship is not what it seems. Ruthless, devious, and seductive, Zozie has plans that will shake their world to pieces. And with everything she loves at stake, Yanne must face a difficult choice: Run, as she has done so many times before, or stand and confront this most dangerous enemy. . . . "
Why I Wanted to Read It: I had enjoyed Chocolat and was interested in the sequel.
How I Liked It: This must be a year for sequels outdoing the originals. I enjoyed Chocolat but at times it felt a bit flat and unfinished. This is a sprawling, gorgeous work that more than finishes Chocolat (but another book in this universe wouldn't be inconceivable, of course), it manages to add layers of depth to the first book after publication.
Where Chocolat could feel halting in its primary characterization, The Girl With No Shadow appears trying to make up for it, with a vast and colorful cast that draws an investment to even the minute characters by the end of the book.
The book is told in three voices (in comparison to Chocolat's two),Vianne Rocher (passing herself off this time as widow Yanne Charbonneau), Anouk (known publicly as Annie this time around), Vianne's now eleven-year-old daughter, and finally the woman who calls herself Zozie de l'Alba. To fit these voices together (particularly the last) must be an intensely difficult process, given how awry it could easily go, but Harris succeeds and the narrative is not only never lost, but all the richer.
It seems Harris's prose has gotten an upgrade as well: as gorgeous as she could paint settings in Chocolat, The Girl With No Shadow goes even deeper and the chocolate, arguably the main character of Chocolat, inspires descriptions in this book that pale weakly in comparison to the first. The herbs and flavorings used are tangible and what's more, Harris doesn't reserve that level of detail for only the culinary. Clothing, artwork, smiles, shoes, furniture, hair, and beyond are glowingly vibrant in Harris's voice.
A side note on the main reason I was interested in Chocolat and subsequently read this book: Paganism. I've complained before (recently, too) about modern writers, particularly modern fantasy writers, portraying (or it could be said "explaining away) modern Paganism as somehow "not real" Witchcraft and the practitioners generally starry-eyed pretenders to the "real" variety: the fairytale witch. The character Zozie de l'Alba reveals to the reader she grew up in an occult bookstore her mother ran, which instantly sends us into wary territory.
Although she does mention Wiccans by name (but doesn't specifically identify as one), she doesn't disparage them as a whole, linking them in with other workers of magic(k):
"But then, my mother had no magic. For all her study, for all her spells and candles and crystals and cards, I never saw her turn so much as a cantrip. Some people are like that; I saw it in her colors long before I told her so. Some people just don't have what it takes to be a witch.
But my mother had the knowledge, if not the skill. She ran an occult bookshop in the suburbs of London, and all kinds of people came and went. High magicians, Odinists, Wiccans by the score, and the occasional would-be Satanists (invariably acne ridden, as if adolescence had never quite passed them by)." (pg 67)
The term "witch" in this book appears to be used interchangeably with "magic(k)-maker", although religious elements, such as high holidays and Gods are mentioned. The magic(k) performed in the novel isn't necessarily of the fairytale variety; l'Alba notes, after studying auras and etheric energy (neither of which are called that in the book: they are known simply as someone's "colors") and the ability to read them (and manipulate them as glamours, which is used by name in the book):
"It took me a little longer to recognize these things as magic. Like all children reared on stories, I'd expected fireworks: magic wands and broomstick rides. The real magic of my mother's books seemed so dull, so fussily academic, with its silly incantations and its pompous old men, that is hardly counted as magic at all." (pg 67)
The magic discussed and performed in the book is a highly dramatized (of course) version of the real thing. Actual Witches (and magic(k)-makers) do study/affect auras, scrying, glamours, sympathetic magic(k) (called by name in the book), in this case, dolls, and totem animals.
Although Vianne and her daughter lament being unable to not be "different", an affliction that is suggested by the fact they're witches ("I never wanted to be a witch," Anouk opens one chapter), if we take "witch" to mean someone naturally gifted in the art of magic(k) (something Witches do acknowledge, since it's something that can occur with any skill of course), then it's not a fairytale term, per se. And although l'Alba scorns her mother as a "second-rate, patchouli-scented wannabe witch, with all her crystals and dream catchers and glib talk of karma" (pg 116), it's not so different from Richard Grant's Pippa Reed from In the Land of Winter, an actual, by-name Pagan Witch, grousing over the overly "New-Age" quality of some of the Witches in the coven she worked with.
That long footnote aside, this book is a masterpiece. Where Chocolat seemed to promise (by premise) more than it delivered, The Girl With No Shadow delivers far beyond its premise. The exploration of the very concept of identity and its ability to be manipulated (or not) is brilliantly handled and sculpted into a fascinated story made of many fascinating stories.
Notable: This book was released in the UK in 2007 under the name The Lollipop Shoes. For some reason, the book's title in the US (where it was released in 2008) is The Girl with No Shadow. I've yet to find a reason for this switch and am frankly pretty curious.
Title: The Girl With No Shadow by Joanne Harris
Details: Copyright 2008, HarperCollins
Synopsis (By Way of Front Flap): " Be careful what you wish for . . .
Hailed as an "irresistible confection" (Entertainment Weekly), "as sweet, rich and utterly satisfying as a fine truffle" (Wall Street Journal), and "an amazement of riches" (New York Times), Chocolat won the hearts of readers and critics everywhere. At last, Joanne Harris returns with The Girl with No Shadow, an exquisite treat that continues the story that began in her international bestseller.
Since she was a little girl, the wind has dictated every move Vianne Rocher has made, buffeting her from place to place, from the small French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes to the crowded streets of Paris. Cloaked in a new identity, that of widow Yanne Charbonneau, she opens a chocolaterie on a small Montmartre street, determined to still the wind at last and keep her daughters, Anouk and the baby, Rosette, safe.
Her new home above the chocolate shop offers calm and quiet: no red sachets hang by the door; no sparks of magic fill the air; no Indian skirts with bells hang in her closet. Conformity brings with it anonymity- and peace. There is even Thierry, the stolid businessman who wants to take care of Yanne and the children. On the cusp of adolescence, an increasingly rebellious and restless Anouk does not understand. But soon the weathervane turns . . . and into their lives blows the charming and enigmatic Zozie de l'Alba. And everything begins to change.
Zozie offers the brightness Yanne's life needs. Anouk, too, is dazzled by this vivacious woman with the lollipop-red shoes who seems to understand her better than anyone- especially her mother. Yet this friendship is not what it seems. Ruthless, devious, and seductive, Zozie has plans that will shake their world to pieces. And with everything she loves at stake, Yanne must face a difficult choice: Run, as she has done so many times before, or stand and confront this most dangerous enemy. . . . "
Why I Wanted to Read It: I had enjoyed Chocolat and was interested in the sequel.
How I Liked It: This must be a year for sequels outdoing the originals. I enjoyed Chocolat but at times it felt a bit flat and unfinished. This is a sprawling, gorgeous work that more than finishes Chocolat (but another book in this universe wouldn't be inconceivable, of course), it manages to add layers of depth to the first book after publication.
Where Chocolat could feel halting in its primary characterization, The Girl With No Shadow appears trying to make up for it, with a vast and colorful cast that draws an investment to even the minute characters by the end of the book.
The book is told in three voices (in comparison to Chocolat's two),Vianne Rocher (passing herself off this time as widow Yanne Charbonneau), Anouk (known publicly as Annie this time around), Vianne's now eleven-year-old daughter, and finally the woman who calls herself Zozie de l'Alba. To fit these voices together (particularly the last) must be an intensely difficult process, given how awry it could easily go, but Harris succeeds and the narrative is not only never lost, but all the richer.
It seems Harris's prose has gotten an upgrade as well: as gorgeous as she could paint settings in Chocolat, The Girl With No Shadow goes even deeper and the chocolate, arguably the main character of Chocolat, inspires descriptions in this book that pale weakly in comparison to the first. The herbs and flavorings used are tangible and what's more, Harris doesn't reserve that level of detail for only the culinary. Clothing, artwork, smiles, shoes, furniture, hair, and beyond are glowingly vibrant in Harris's voice.
A side note on the main reason I was interested in Chocolat and subsequently read this book: Paganism. I've complained before (recently, too) about modern writers, particularly modern fantasy writers, portraying (or it could be said "explaining away) modern Paganism as somehow "not real" Witchcraft and the practitioners generally starry-eyed pretenders to the "real" variety: the fairytale witch. The character Zozie de l'Alba reveals to the reader she grew up in an occult bookstore her mother ran, which instantly sends us into wary territory.
Although she does mention Wiccans by name (but doesn't specifically identify as one), she doesn't disparage them as a whole, linking them in with other workers of magic(k):
"But then, my mother had no magic. For all her study, for all her spells and candles and crystals and cards, I never saw her turn so much as a cantrip. Some people are like that; I saw it in her colors long before I told her so. Some people just don't have what it takes to be a witch.
But my mother had the knowledge, if not the skill. She ran an occult bookshop in the suburbs of London, and all kinds of people came and went. High magicians, Odinists, Wiccans by the score, and the occasional would-be Satanists (invariably acne ridden, as if adolescence had never quite passed them by)." (pg 67)
The term "witch" in this book appears to be used interchangeably with "magic(k)-maker", although religious elements, such as high holidays and Gods are mentioned. The magic(k) performed in the novel isn't necessarily of the fairytale variety; l'Alba notes, after studying auras and etheric energy (neither of which are called that in the book: they are known simply as someone's "colors") and the ability to read them (and manipulate them as glamours, which is used by name in the book):
"It took me a little longer to recognize these things as magic. Like all children reared on stories, I'd expected fireworks: magic wands and broomstick rides. The real magic of my mother's books seemed so dull, so fussily academic, with its silly incantations and its pompous old men, that is hardly counted as magic at all." (pg 67)
The magic discussed and performed in the book is a highly dramatized (of course) version of the real thing. Actual Witches (and magic(k)-makers) do study/affect auras, scrying, glamours, sympathetic magic(k) (called by name in the book), in this case, dolls, and totem animals.
Although Vianne and her daughter lament being unable to not be "different", an affliction that is suggested by the fact they're witches ("I never wanted to be a witch," Anouk opens one chapter), if we take "witch" to mean someone naturally gifted in the art of magic(k) (something Witches do acknowledge, since it's something that can occur with any skill of course), then it's not a fairytale term, per se. And although l'Alba scorns her mother as a "second-rate, patchouli-scented wannabe witch, with all her crystals and dream catchers and glib talk of karma" (pg 116), it's not so different from Richard Grant's Pippa Reed from In the Land of Winter, an actual, by-name Pagan Witch, grousing over the overly "New-Age" quality of some of the Witches in the coven she worked with.
That long footnote aside, this book is a masterpiece. Where Chocolat seemed to promise (by premise) more than it delivered, The Girl With No Shadow delivers far beyond its premise. The exploration of the very concept of identity and its ability to be manipulated (or not) is brilliantly handled and sculpted into a fascinated story made of many fascinating stories.
Notable: This book was released in the UK in 2007 under the name The Lollipop Shoes. For some reason, the book's title in the US (where it was released in 2008) is The Girl with No Shadow. I've yet to find a reason for this switch and am frankly pretty curious.