GOOD READS SUMMARY:
When her estranged mother dies, Stella is left with an unusual a one-way plane ticket and a note reading Go to Paris . But Stella is hardly cut out for adventure; a childhood trauma has kept her confined to the strict routines of her comfort zone. When her boss encourages her to take time off, Stella resigns herself to honoring her mother’s last wishes.
Alone in a foreign city, Stella falls into old habits, living cautiously and frugally. Then she stumbles across a vintage store where she tries on a fabulous Dior dress. The shopkeeper insists that this dress was meant for Stella and, for the first time in her life, Stella does something impulsive. She buys the dress and together they embark on an adventure.
Her first iconic brasserie Les Deux Magots, where Stella tastes her first oysters, and then meets an octogenarian art collector who decides to take her under his wing. As Jules introduces her to a veritable who’s who of the 1980s Paris literary, art, and culinary worlds, Stella begins to understand what it might mean to live a larger life.
As weeks—and many decadent meals—go by, Stella ends up living as a “tumbleweed” at famed bookstore Shakespeare & Company, uncovers a hundred-year-old mystery in a Manet painting, and discovers a passion for food that may be connected to her past.
Alone in a foreign city, Stella falls into old habits, living cautiously and frugally. Then she stumbles across a vintage store where she tries on a fabulous Dior dress. The shopkeeper insists that this dress was meant for Stella and, for the first time in her life, Stella does something impulsive. She buys the dress and together they embark on an adventure.
Her first iconic brasserie Les Deux Magots, where Stella tastes her first oysters, and then meets an octogenarian art collector who decides to take her under his wing. As Jules introduces her to a veritable who’s who of the 1980s Paris literary, art, and culinary worlds, Stella begins to understand what it might mean to live a larger life.
As weeks—and many decadent meals—go by, Stella ends up living as a “tumbleweed” at famed bookstore Shakespeare & Company, uncovers a hundred-year-old mystery in a Manet painting, and discovers a passion for food that may be connected to her past.
TEE'S THOUGHTS:
I was just carried away to Paris while reading Ruth Reichl's book The Paris Novel, and let me tell you it was a magical trip through those pages. This book has everything you think of when you say Paris...Art, fashion, food, Shakespeare & Company Bookstore, love. Is there anything I missed?
Stella St Vincent's mother has died. She was never the best role model for Stella as she grew up, she tended to be very much an extravagant freewill, living for the moment. She leaves a note for Stella, along with a small inheritance, telling Stell to take the money and go to Paris. Stella has no intention to do so, she has responsibilities with work and life, and she does not want to be anything like her mother, but fate steps in when her boss tells her she needs time off to mourn, so she takes the small amount of money and heads to Paris.
A bit after arriving in the city of Love she spots a black vintage Dior dress in a shop window and is instantly drawn to it. Short on money she makes a deal with the shopkeeper and leaves with it and a few instructions from the shopkeeper.
This simple black dress opens Stella to a whole new world ( I hate to admit it but I sang that last part of that sentence, proving to myself that I watch more Disney than I care to admit ) and also gives her much insight into her mother's past life.
You can not beat the descriptions in this book. The food and wine made me hungry and I craved a good baguette, you could taste the food, and rightly so, I learned later that the author is a food writer, a talent she used well in the story.
The story is a bit predictable, but it is so darn good, that you overlook that small thing. Stella herself wasn't particularly likable, but all the characters in the book are richly written and so different from each other. You have sweetness in one, stalkerish, and somewhat eccentric in some others.
The Paris Novel is an easy read, so it is a good book to relax with during a free afternoon. Don't expect a lot of action, it isn't that type of book, it is a book you savor like fine wine, and just enjoy while you have it in your hand.
