Is 'Chocolat' sequel just as enchanting?
Writing a sequel to a best-seller is risky business. Add to that an Oscar-nominated movie, and Joanne Harris faced double jeopardy when she sat down to continue the story she had told so deliciously in "Chocolat" (1999). At the close of that novel, Vianne Rocher and her daughter, Anouk, fled the village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, the target of dark rumors and attacks by a hostile, narrow-minded parish priest.
Vianne has reinvented herself as Yanne Charbonneau. All she wants is to be accepted, to be ordinary. By now, her daughter is known as Annie and has a half sister named Rosette -- a special child who doesn't talk and refuses to feed herself. The attempt to leave their identities, the villagers and the gypsy river people behind has led the trio from one location to another. The three find refuge in Paris, among the narrow byways and antique squares of Montmartre. There on the Place des Faux-Monnayeurs, Yanne meets Madame Poussin, an old woman who runs a decrepit cafe. Yanne trades her labor for lodging, and four quiet years pass.
When the old lady dies, Yanne takes over the cafe and soon converts it into her signature chocolaterie. Three very different voices tell us what then happens at the renovated store between Oct. 31 and Christmas Day. At the center is Yanne, committed to eschewing the magic and visions that ended their stay in Lansquenet. She wants a stable life for her daughters and is determined to put aside the supernatural gifts she inherited.
The second voice is that of Anouk/Annie, now 11. For the first time, she goes to a regular school but is tormented by her classmates for not belonging. She turns to her only friend, an imaginary rabbit named Pantoufle. And she begins to think about using her own magic to defend herself.
The third voice is that of Zozie de l'Alba, a lovely, gifted young woman who mysteriously shows up one day and volunteers to help in the store. (We distrust her from the start.) She moves into the spare room and sets out to entrance Anouk.
The plot is complicated, and the cast of supporting characters extensive, but each one is a treat: Thierry Le Tresset, the wealthy stuffy suitor for Yanne's hand, just doesn't get strong women; shy Fat Nico, mainlining macaroons, and elfin Alice find each other over cups of hot chocolate; hostile Laurent, a competitive cafe owner, is won over. The store is crowded with customers looking for something more than chocolates.
What the customers eat and drink at the shop, now called Le Rocher de Montmartre, is such a strong presence in the novel that it is almost one of the protagonists. The book is a torment of mouthwatering descriptions.
For any sequel, there has to be a bottom line: Is this as good as "Chocolat"? Will those who loved the book or the movie be satisfied, delighted, disappointed? The truthful answer -- sorry -- is yes and no. The magic of France, relationships built on truffles and second sight are just as fascinating here. The narrative is somewhat uneven, though. The legends are not always woven into the story, and the cast of characters is too large.
Still, Joanne Harris knows just how to interweave lives. The relationships among her amazing characters are perfectly articulated. They find their places in the tableaux, and as the novel tumbles to its climax, Harris pulls all her irons out of the fire -- or perhaps one should say, her chocolate off the stove.