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The Lollipop Shoes (US title is The Girl With No Shadow)

Author: Joanne Harris
Publisher: Black Swan
Category: Book

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Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars

32 reviews
Sales Rank: 773

Media: Paperback
Pages: 496
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.1 x 1.5

ISBN: 0552773158
EAN: 9780552773157
ASIN: 0552773158

Publication Date: April 21, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Daily dispatch from UK warehouse - This book is in GOOD overall condition. It shows signs of having been read and has general light wear to the cover, spine and pages. Just contact us by email for a fast response.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 32

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Out of Character? February 21, 2008
7 out of 8 found this review helpful

I enjoyed this book but was slightly disappointed with it. At times I felt that Vianne Rocher was acting in a manner that was out of character. I wasn't as gripped by this sequel as I'd hoped to be and found it was slightly tiresome during the middle section. However, the last quarter was gripping reading and I enjoyed the final showdown immensely. I also loved that Harris has gone back to her more dark style of writing, and I enjoyed hearing the Grimm style fairy tales that Vianne's mum had told her when she was small.

2 out of 5 stars

Not her best. December 31, 2007
5 out of 8 found this review helpful

Joanne Harris's books either capture my imagination or don't - this one did not and I do have to agree with another reviewer that she appears to be recycling the villain from Gentlemen and Players with a view to a movie sequel to Chocolat. Whereas the original Chocolat was full of wonderful characters from the beginning to the end, this is populated by a more disappointing ensemble of characters, not all playing themselves.

3 out of 5 stars

I grabbed it when it first came out November 24, 2007
6 out of 7 found this review helpful

Unfortunately, this isn't the best example of that. The beginning and end are fine (though the end is rather cliched) but the middle is rather flabby and needed some good sharp editing. I think it could probably have been cut by about a quarter of its length.

I also found difficulty telling the 3 women's voices apart - I kept having to go back (and I wasn't skipping either, at that point ...) and try to reassess whose section it was, which didn't really help.

No doubt this will do well, but Harris can do much better than this. I recommend Tino Georgiou's--The Fates--for a more satisfing read.

5 out of 5 stars

Beware red shoes! October 1, 2007
14 out of 16 found this review helpful

This is the sequel to Chocolat, and re-introduces the author's much loved characters, Vianne and her daughter Anuke, the gypsy Rue, and two new characters; Zozie, a woman who is nothing at all like she seems, and Rosette, Vianne's daughter by Rue.
The story is told from the differing view points of Zozie, Vianne and Anuke, and Joanne Harris captures their three distinct voices perfectly.
On the run after the down fall of her nemesis the priest, Vianne and Anuke settle in Paris, where Vianne opens a chocolate shop and struggles to create a sense of normality for herself and her daughters. However, she is barely breaking even, and she has the added worry of Rosette, who refuses to speak or eat with a spoon, though she hears and understands everything, and what is more, she shows signs of the gift that Anuke longs to explore and Vianne tries her best to ignore.
Their fortunes change when Zozie breezes in to town. Soon the shop is thriving and Vianne and Anuke wonder how they ever managed without her. But the price for this newfound happiness is far beyond anything either of them expect.
This is a deeply atmospheric novel. The sinister nature of the story builds towards the inevitable climax and the suspense literally keeps the reader glued to the page.
It's very refreshing to have at least some of the story told by the villain and Joanne Harris does it beautifully.
Lollypop shoes has the same sharp-tongued wit and charm as Chocolat, though it is a somewhat darker tale in which magic features much more prominently. In spite of that, the book feels firmly grounded in reality and in no way resembles a fantasy novel. This book and its predecessor far in a way surpass the author's other works.

5 out of 5 stars

A real magical treat September 21, 2007
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

This is another Harris classic in the making. The usual potent mix of mouth-watering descriptions of food, magical characters and a page-turning plot. This is the sequel to Chocolate and is a worthy follow-up to what has become Harris' most well known novel. Where magic is often an under-laying theme in her work, in this novel it is at the forefront. The great thing about Harris is that she talks about witchcraft and spells as if they are everyday - her power is in making the fabulous seem normal so amazing things can happen to ordinary people without the story becoming far-fetched. This is an old-fashioned story of good versus evil - and although you are pretty sure you will triumph it is a rollercoaster adventure to get to the end.