The Lollipop shoes by Joanne Harris

[MargotTenenbaumscoat]

I’m struggling to get into this book but I loved chocolat.
I really want to like it but I’m 100 pages in and it’s not exciting me.

Do I continue? Does it get better?
I think I’ve only ever given up on a handful of books!

It's probably just personal preference. I don't think whether it "gets better" is a question that anyone else can answer for you.
I'm probably in the minority; I actually preferred The Lollipop Shoes to Chocolat, but then I really did not enjoy either of the following two books in the series. The Lollipop Shoes was a book I loved from the start, so from your perspective, it may be that this story just isn't your thing.

Her " Gentlemen and Players" is very good. Her best book, I think.

I've never read Chocolat but have seen the film and know roughly what it's all about. I didn't enjoy The Lollipop Shoes much. It's probably the most "magical" of the series that I've read, and I'm not usually much of a one for books with fantasy or magical elements. It feels to me like this book has an emptiness at its centre since so much of it involves a mystery over who might or might not have some hard-to-describe power, although there were a couple of subplots I quite enjoyed.

My favourite of that series is definitely Peaches For Monsieur Le Curé - it has brief magical references but the main story is very down-to-earth, there are some great secondary characters and a good message about inclusion. I didn't like the more recent one where Rosette is older nearly as much.

Her completely non-magical books, especially Coastliners and Five Quarters of the Orange, are pretty good in my opinion.

Thanks all!

I’m definitely enjoying it more now than I was, so was right to not give up.

Eager to read more of her books!

@CoubousAndTourmalet Definitely agree on personal preference but couldn’t find as much feedback on this one compared to Chocolat.

I have given up on it. I enjoyed Chocolat. But can’t make head or tail of this one!

Clearly I'm in the minority with this one then. But I am primarily a reader of fantasy, so perhaps that makes a difference.