Books like Chéri

Reading Colette's short novel Chéri, felt like munching on a box of fancy Belgian truffles, and in this case washed down with a bottle of fine vintage French wine, everything is all very French and all very luxurious. On it's first publication in 1920 both Marcel Proust and André Gide deemed it as a masterpiece, I wouldn't go as far as to say that, but was pleasantly surprised how pleasurable a read it was. I love how the female lead character Léa de Lonval is described as a magnificent and aging courtesan facing the end of her sexual career?, er...excuse me, the poor girl hasn't even hit 50!, give her a break, and to make matters worse she is madly in love with the exquisitely handsome and spoilt brat Chéri, who I would describe at times as an arrogant sniveling little toad. The fact Chéri is half Léa's age doesn't stop the flowers blossoming in love for the pair, the dashing playboy would first lead her up the garden path and advantageously marry someone else, seeing a sombre Léa reluctantly deciding their relationship must end. Without Chéri, Léa does experience a new wanted freedom, but both lovers would finally realise just how deeply they are connected in more ways than one.Seven years prior, Léa, a courtesan in the Parisian demi-monde before the first world war, agreed to take Chéri to help supervise his amorous education, their lavish time spent together is awash with servants, boudoirs, silks and satins, pearls and sapphires, warm bodies and moonlight. It's as if all the house fronts of Paris were thrown away leaving an open view of men and women talking, dressing, bathing, brooding and loving. Colette's sensual prose with a twist of melancholy, was as rich and charming as it's characters, worked so well without the need to be overly sexual, and never falls into the trap of being a generic sentimental romance novel in the mold of say Mills & Boon. Love is deeply entangled with maternal love in this book that for a modern reader may surprise, with wit and wisdom Colette is ultimately concerned with the human heart and the transgressive emotions it might shelter. I read this looking more at it from Léa's perspective, a wonderfully drawn and pragmatic business woman filled with kindness. Mixed with a tenderness and passion for Chéri, but tingled with a sad realization that she feels age is not on her side anymore. She felt much pain on discovering Chéri's marriage plans (although his overly protective mother plays a pivotal role in his life).Sumptuous, and beautifully written with a warm human touch, Colette, at it's core, simply writes of love and aging, and tells us how love sometimes binds and keeps a woman from breathing freely or how it may shape and support her and help her to be beautiful. It's not that I disliked Monsieur Chéri, through all his lavish living, he was still driven by human emotions just like anyone else.I can't hold that against him. He still deserved a smack in the chops though.For me it's hovering somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars. It is worthy of a four. Writing of romance is not always easy, and it did tick most of the right boxes.