de Ruth Reichl
“An enchanting and irresistible feast . . . As with a perfect meal in the world’s most magical city, I never wanted this sublime novel to end.”—Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, author of Good Company
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 inheritance: a one-way plane ticket and a note reading “Go to Paris.” Stella is hardly cut out for adventure; a traumatic childhood has kept her confined to the strict routines of her comfort zone. But 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 embarks on an adventure.
Her first stop: the 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 Stella to a veritable who’s who of the Paris literary, art, and culinary worlds, she 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.
“An enchanting and irresistible feast . . . As with a perfect meal in the world’s most magical city, I never wanted this sublime novel to end.”—Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, author of Good Company
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 inheritance: a one-way plane ticket and a note reading “Go to Paris.” Stella is hardly cut out for adventure; a traumatic childhood has kept her confined to the strict routines of her comfort zone. But 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 embarks on an adventure.
Her first stop: the 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 Stella to a veritable who’s who of the Paris literary, art, and culinary worlds, she 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.
Critiques-
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February 19, 2024
Food critic and novelist Reichl (Delicious!) serves up a delectable story of an introverted copy editor’s life-changing visit to Paris in the 1980s. Stella St. Vincent’s quiet New York City routine is turned upside down when she learns her recently deceased mother, Celia, has bequeathed her a ticket to Paris and the means to stay there for six weeks. Celia had spent time in Paris in her early years, and Stella interprets the gesture as an exhortation for her to be more adventurous. The “Cinderella”-esque plot hinges on Stella’s encounter with the proprietor of a Parisian dress shop, who inexplicably lends her a $6,000 Christian Dior dress for one night. Wearing it, she walks with a newfound confidence and sensuality (“With each step, the scent of apricots and vanilla came wafting up”). While enjoying her first oysters at a restaurant, she attracts the attention of elderly art dealer Jules Delatour. The two become fast friends, and Jules brings her around to the Shakespeare and Company bookshop, where she hobnobs with Allen Ginsberg and other famous visitors. The expressive prose makes tangible Stella’s awakening as she develops a passion for French culture and cuisine like foie gras: “The flavor grew richer, rounder, louder with each passing second.” Reichl serves a feast for the senses. Agent: Kathy Robbins, Robbins Office. -
February 15, 2024
A stiff, lonely young woman takes a life-changing trip to Paris. After suffering a miserable childhood at the hands of her narcissistic mother, Stella St. Vincent is surprised to receive an envelope labeled "For My Daughter" after Celia's death in 1983. In it is a piece of paper that says "Go to Paris"; the money to pay for the trip will only be released after it's booked. This is just the beginning of a silly story with a wildly overcaffeinated plot and characters that are not even close to real people, foremost among them an annoying protagonist who can't stop shooting herself in the foot even as she miraculously finds her tribe and discovers her extraordinary gifts for eating and cooking. Though she lacks the instincts of a fiction writer, Reichl fills her second novel with the high-flying writing about food, wine, places, and clothes that have made her nonfiction work a well-deserved success. In fact, according to an author's note, this book grew out of her editor's request that she expand a chapter from her memoir about trying on a little black dress in Paris. Unfortunately, a few too many ingredients have been added, including a search for a forgotten 19th-century woman painter; appearances by culinary figures like Marc Meneau and Jean Troisgros and literary figures like John Ashbery, James Baldwin, and Allen Ginsberg; a nasty Mr. Darcy-style love interest; and the search for Stella's father, whom she either does or doesn't want to find depending on the page. But the food writing is almost worth the price of admission, ranging from the horrific to the euphoric. Here's Stella eating ortolans, whole baby birds: "All her senses were concentrated in her mouth as her teeth crashed down again and again. She felt the skull crackle and tasted what must be brain. It was hot, it was primitive. It was exciting." A somewhat ridiculous novel, nicely marbled with fine food and travel writing.COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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March 1, 2024
Reichl, former editor of Gourmet and author of memoirs, a cookbook, and the novel Delicious!, pens a Paris-set, food-rich story about Stella, whose mother bequeaths her a one-way ticket to the City of Lights. That leads to the purchase of a vintage Dior dress, which helps her gain entry into the glittering culinary and artistic center of Paris--all of which leads Stella to find a new way of life, with plenty of food as comfort. Prepub Alert.
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