The Lollipop Shoes
by Joanne Harris
(also published as The Girl with No Shadow)
ABOUTSeeking refuge and anonymity in the cobbled streets of Montmartre, Yanne and her daughters, Rosette and Annie, live peacefully, if not happily, above their little chocolate shop. Then into their lives blows Zozie de l’Alba, the lady with the lollipop shoes, and everything begins to change. (from Goodreads)
MY THOUGHTS
As a sequel, this book was a disappointment. Aside from a few character that appear in both books, there is very little similarity. "Chocolat" was profound, intricately layered, gorgeously written. "The Lollipop Shoes" is none of those things.
As a stand-alone book, though, it's okay. It's a reasonably well-crafted story and it was an enjoyable read. There are no intriguing plot twists, no complex characters, no lyrical descriptions. Not remarkable. Just averagely good.
I greatly disliked the ending, though, which felt very contrived. The Bad Witch Goes Away, the Good Witch Lives Happily Ever After, and everything's puppies and sunshine and daisies. Blech.
RATING
"The Lollipop Shoes" is very solidly a 2 1/2. But I don't give half ratings, so I'll be generous and round up to a 3.
I read this book for the Paris In July blog event.
I didn't think Chocolat was amazing so maybe I'll like this one! i do have it somewhere on my shelves.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite different from Chocolat, so, yes, perhaps you will like this one more, Ellie.
ReplyDeleteI am currently reading Chocolat for Paris in July. I loved the movie and, of course, I always think the book is better. Perhaps I'll save myself the time and skip the sequel, though. Thanks for the honest review.
ReplyDeleteOh, I was so excited when I read the first few lines and saw it was a sequel to Chocolat. Then my dreams were crushed.
ReplyDeleteJust kidding. It sounds like it isn't as good as Chocolate, so I won't be in a hurry to read it, but it's good to know this sequel is out there in the world if I ever get a hankering for it.
Oh, I'm not trying to dissuade anyone from reading it! It's not fantastic, but as I said in the review, it's just "averagely good."
ReplyDeleteYou've got a great reading list for Paris in July :) This was a good-ish book I thought. It would probably have only been ok but I used to live on the square where the chocolate shop is so it had a special 'je ne sais quoi' for me :-D
ReplyDeleteOh, Relish, you LIVED there? Yes, that would certainly influence your opinion of the book, I think! :)
ReplyDelete