My thoughts
This book is not at all what I was hoping for. It's was a first for me by this author and I'm so disappointed.
Parts of it was very good. The parts about the trip to Paris and the foods. The people Stella met. The fact that she finally met and liked her father. The descriptions were great. But the story itself drove me nuts. Stella was, in my opinion, very childish about things. There is caution then there is just stupid. She spends the day with an older man then freaks out that he may be nefarious with things. She describes him as much older too. I understand as she was molested as a young child and that plays a part. Kind of. It didn't bother her when she spent the whole day with him though and later when she meets men. Not that she is loose in any way. She's a very uptight woman. She had an awful mother. Though said mother didn't abuse her. But she was cold and still dated the molester. I didn't like her at all.
The dress sounds beautiful and I guess that is what made Stella feel so different. Like she was truly beautiful instead of plain. Though she did apply some makeup and if memory serves me she fixed her hair a bit. That helps. I just didn't like her. I didn't like any of the characters.
The Shakespearean Bookstore sounds great. Thought you won't fine many that let you just take up residence there. Sleep there. I understand that this bookstore was real and that the owner did allow people to read free and sleep in it.
I can sum this one up as a DNF and didn't enjoy what I did finish. I read enough to write a review and to say that this book was just not for me. I understand that most loved it. I didn't.
I think it was well written and the author put her heart and soul into it. That makes it worthy of the stars I gave it. The Author's Note is worth reading. Please do that. I'm so sorry for this author's loss. That was sad. I feel awful that I didn't like this book but it happens.
Thank you #NetGalley, #RuthReichl, #RandomHousePublishing, for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.
3/5 stars for me.
About
Bestselling author Ruth Reichl takes readers on an adventure of food, art, and fashion in 1980s Paris in this dazzling, heartfelt novel
Stella reached for an oyster, tipped her head and tossed it back. It was cool and slippery, the flavor so briny it was like diving into the ocean... Oysters, she thought, where have they been all my life?
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. A feast for the senses, this novel is a testament to living deliciously, taking chances, and finding your true home.
Stella reached for an oyster, tipped her head and tossed it back. It was cool and slippery, the flavor so briny it was like diving into the ocean... Oysters, she thought, where have they been all my life?
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. A feast for the senses, this novel is a testament to living deliciously, taking chances, and finding your true home.
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