And again I spent my last quid at Waterstone's...

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Synopsis from amazon.co.uk:
When an exotic stranger, Vianne Rocher, arrives in the French village of Lansquenet and opens a chocolate boutique directly opposite the church, Father Reynaud identifies her as a serious danger to his flock especially as it is the beginning of Lent, the traditional season of self-denial. War is declared as the priest denounces the newcomer's wares as the ultimate sin. As a result, Vianne's plans for an Easter Chocolate Festival divide the whole community in a conflict that escalates into a 'Church not Chocolate' battle. As mouths water in anticipation, can the solemnity of the Church compare with the pagan passion of a chocolate eclair?

Amazon.com
Vianne Rocher and her 6-year-old daughter, Anouk, arrive in the small village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes--"a blip on the fast road between Toulouse and Bourdeaux"--in February, during the carnival. Three days later, Vianne opens a luxuriant chocolate shop crammed with the most tempting of confections and offering a mouth-watering variety of hot chocolate drinks. It's Lent, the shop is opposite the church and open on Sundays, and Francis Reynaud, the austere parish priest, is livid.

One by one the locals succumb to Vianne's concoctions. Joanne Harris weaves their secrets and troubles, their loves and desires, into her third novel, with the lightest touch. There's sad, polite Guillame and his dying dog; thieving, beaten-up Joséphine Muscat; schoolchildren who declare it "hypercool" when Vianne says they can help eat the window display--a gingerbread house complete with witch. And there's Armande, still vigorous in her 80s, who can see Anouk's "imaginary" rabbit, Pantoufle, and recognizes Vianne for who she really is. However, certain villagers--including Armande's snobby daughter and Joséphine's violent husband--side with Reynaud. So when Vianne announces a Grand Festival of Chocolate commencing Easter Sunday, it's all-out war: war between church and chocolate, between good and evil, between love and dogma.


From Publishers Weekly
The battle lines between church and chocolate are drawn by this British (and part French) author in her appealing debut about a bewitching confectioner who settles in a sleepy French village and arouses the appetites of the pleasure-starved parishioners. Young widow Vianne Roche's mouthwatering bonbons, steaming mugs of liqueur-laced cocoa and flaky cream-filled patisserie don't earn her a warm welcome from the stern prelate of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes. In Francis Reynaud's zeal to enforce strict Lenten vows of self-denial, he regards his sybaritic neighbor with suspicion and disdain. Undaunted, Vianne garners support from the town's eccentrics, chiefly Armande Voizin, the oldest living resident, a self-professed sorceress who senses in Vianne a kindred spirit. A fun-loving band of river gypsies arrives, and a colorful pageant unfurls. The novel's diary form?counting down the days of Lent until Easter?is suspenseful, and Harris takes her time unreeling the skein of evil that will prove to be Reynaud's undoing. As a witch's daughter who inherited her mother's profound distrust of the clergy, Vianne never quite comes to life, but her child, Anouk, is an adorable sprite, a spunky six-year-old already wise to the ways of an often inhospitable world. Gourmand Harris's tale of sin and guilt embodies a fond familiarity with things French that will doubtless prove irresistible to many readers. Rights sold in the U.K., Germany, Canada, Sweden, Holland, Spain, Italy, Finland, Denmark, Brazil, Israel, Norway, Greece, the Czech Republic, Poland.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This is going to be a bookring soon, travelling to
1. krab-te (Tegau, GER)
2. bluecat07 (Oberursel, GER)
3. Marianne013 (Ettlingen, GER)
4. belly-dancer (Braunschweig, GER)
5. solnechny (Selters, GER)
6. akkolady (Duisburg, GER)
7. pauline61 (Kroppach, GER)
8. boagat (Blankenrath, GER)
9. Sheepseeker (Bonn, GER)
10. morgenrot (Straubenhardt, GER)
11. westpohl (Leipzig, GER)
12. ink-heart (Braunschweig, GER)
13. Feodora (Braunschweig, GER)
14. Primel (Unterschleißheim, GER)
15. Lesenmachtfroh (Nürnberg, GER)
16. DieHenkerin (Hohenhameln, GER)
17. gate-indigo (Ostfildern, GER)
18. devourbooks (München, GER)
19. calisson (Heidelberg, GER)

I finished listening on Saturday, and this book was a real pleasure. I enjoyed Gareth Armstrong and esp. Samantha Bond a lot!
I knew neither the book nor the film before and I just bought these CDs because I liked dubly's "Gentlemen and Players" (http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/4883818) so much.
Compared with this, Chocolat was a bit weak. But nevertheless I was riveted by Vianne's subsequent conflict with Father Reynaud, and the shadowy background of both of them. I just felt the book ended rather abruptly, so I thought it was maybe abridged - but it wasn't.

Vianne Rocher is a pagan single mother and she does not attend the Church, that's what really annoys the priest and makes Vianne suspicious. Raynard seems to feel that she is personally trying to wage a war against him and the Church by tempting those in his flock away from the faith by chocolate and other such fancies. Just, as time passes, it seems that the priest is one of a small group who seem determined to disagree with her presence while the other villagers grow to accept her and enjoy her friendship.

I was surprised that the subject of this book actually was the examination of traditional catholic faith against paganism, against the background of wartime. I don't think paganism has been a widespread religion these days. I had furthermore expected WW II being a bigger topic.
But, all in all, that doesn't detract from enjoying the book and looking forward to starting "Blackberry Wine" now (http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/5313035)

heute gut angekommen.
11.9.
Ich hatte mich mit dem Hören diesmal schwer getan. 21.9.
Wie die beiden anderen geht auch dies morgen per Post zu bluecat07.
(Edit sagt so ist es besser.)

Lost in post schon nach der ersten Station :-(

Vielen vielen Dank, krab-te, für's Brennen von Ersatz-Exemplaren. Ich hätte sonst alle drei Hörbücher nochmal durch den Audio-Grabber jagen müssen.

Heute gut angekommen. Danke fürs Schicken und Brennen, krab-te!

Und schon sind die Hörbücher wieder auf dem Weg zu Marianne...

Ich habe sie erstmal auf meinen Rechner gezogen und werde hier meinen Kommentar abgeben, wenn ich dieses gehört habe.

Vielen Dank für den Ring, Schneefee!

Found the audiobook in my mailbox yesterday. Thanks for providing and sending it.

The audio book is on its way to belly-dancer. Have fun.

Arrived safely today!

Found this audiobook in my mail yesterday. Copied it into my MP3-player and started to listen to it yesterday.

Thanks for the ring and for sending it to me.

A fantastic story brilliantly read. I loved this audiobook.

Got it along with Five Quarters of the Orange (5313049) and Blackberry Wine (5313035)Unfortunately at the moment I'm not in the mood to listen to it at the moment, but I'll do so later.

I will send it to the next and give my comment later.

Arrived safely. Thank you.

Natürlich auch letzte Woche - während meines Urlaubs - angekommen. Vielen Dank fürs Schicken!

'Five Quarters of the Orange' und 'Chocolat' kenn ich beide bereits, ich habe mir die CD wegen 'Blackberry Wine' bestellt. Zu diesem 'Buch' werde ich also weiter nicht kommentieren...

Tja-wir waren eine gute Woche ohne Postzustellung...nur wegen "VitaminB" kam gestern die gesammelte Papierflut samt Sicherungskopie hier an! Ich werde frühestens Ende nächster Woche zum Hören kommen-aber dann mit Genuss! Danke!
* Chocolat kenne ich auch schon-als Film. Werde sehen, ob ich auch noch höre..?!

CD ist angekommmen und wird demnächst beim Bügeln angehört.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

For once, I am sending the audiobook on without a comment. - I am going on a holiday tomorrow and just didn't want to stall the ring any longer. I'll edit my first journal entry soon after I'm back. The Harris-Box is sent to Feodora tomorrow morning. Enjoy!

Arrived last week. Will take it to Bonn with me a might listen

As I could not get into the story it might travel to its next station

Die CD ist gut angekommen!

Ich habe festgestellt, mein Englisch ist sehr dürftig. Die CD reist demnächst weiter!

Arrived today as part of a box which is in fact a disc.
I'm looking forward to it. What a pity that there are so few comments so far.

Enjoyed it more than the film.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Geht an Henkerin.

Heute wohlbehalten bei mir angekommen. :o)
Vielen lieben Dank für den Ring und fürs Schicken!

Ich bin einfach nicht der Typ für diese Art Geschichten...
Sobald die nächste Adresse da ist, reist die Joanne Harris-Box weiter.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

...on its way...

got it

cd kam heute in münchen an.

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

geht mit zum Treffen

Mit herzlichem Dank gestern in den tiefen einer Tüte gefunden, werde bald reinhören, danke!

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Reisen wieder nach Hause zu Schneefee, danke fürs teilen!

back home and RES for Vekiki's friend in London