Book Review: "The Paris Novel" by Ruth Reichl

It should come as no surprise that a book written by Ruth Reichl, former editor-in-chief of Gourmet magazine (which I miss so much), has some of the most vivid and sumptuous descriptions of food I’ve ever seen. And while my stomach was growling quite a bit, it was balanced by some mentions of food I’d definitely never eat, so no calories were consumed!

In 1983, Stella’s mother Celia passed away. They rarely saw each other, because Celia lived life elaborately and reinvented anything (or anyone) she didn’t like, while Stella felt lost without specific plans or routines. So imagine Stella’s surprise when she learned that Celia left her some money with the stipulation it be used for a trip to Paris.

She doesn’t quite understand why Celia would send her to Paris, but she quickly fell in love with the city. One day she comes upon a vintage dress shop and tries on an exquisite Dior dress. The shop owner urges Stella to buy it, saying it was made for her, so Stella does something impulsive for the first time in her life.

The shop owner tells her to go to a brasserie and order oysters, and Stella is dazzled by their taste. It is there she meets Jules, a wealthy art consultant in his 80s, who takes a liking to her. It’s not long before he’s introducing her to some of the finest French restaurants, indulging her love of art, and involving her in some of his schemes.

While in Paris, she becomes part of a community at the famed Shakespeare and Company bookstore and becomes obsessed with solving a mystery about a female artist from a time where women were not treated equally in France. She also discovers an absolute passion for food, which may be something she came by naturally.

Paris is such a wonderful setting for a book, and I thought this was lots of fun. I did think the subplot about the female artist dragged the rest of the story down a bit, but I still couldn’t get enough of the characters and their larger-than-life personalities. Il est bien fait! (Bravo!)