The Paris Novel

The Paris Novel is a novel by Ruth Reichl. Set in 1983, the story follows Stella, a young copy editor living in New York City. When her estranged mother suddenly passes away, leaving Stella a sum of money and a plane ticket to Paris, she hesitantly leaves behind her cautious, comfortable life and embarks on a journey of self-discovery in Paris, where she finds a community and discovers her talents and passions. As a renowned chef, writer, and food critic, Reichl is known for her nonfiction writing, and her expertise permeates the story as Stella discovers the joys of French cuisine.

This guide refers to the 2024 hardcover edition published by Penguin Random House.

Content Warning: The source text and this guide discuss sexual assault of a minor and death of a family member.

Plot Summary

The novel follows Stella St. Vincent, a young copy editor living in New York City. After experiencing a traumatic assault as a child and being raised by her neglectful mother, Celia, Stella lives a cautious, structured life. When her mother suddenly passes away, leaving her a sum of money and instructions to go to Paris, Stella reluctantly does so, initially maintaining her cautious and scheduled approach to life. She keeps a rigid routine and a frugal budget. One day, she wanders into a dress shop, where the shopkeeper makes her try on a black vintage Dior dress, insisting that Stella is meant to own it. Its label bears the name “Séverine,” the name of its previous owner. Stella wears the dress out for a day before returning it, leading to a cascade of chance encounters: She meets an elderly widower and art expert Jules Delatour, who introduces her to the art and culinary world of Paris. After a visit to Musée du Jeu de Paume, Stella becomes fascinated with a painting—Edouard Manet’s Olympia—and specifically the woman who modeled for the painting, Victorine-Louise Meurent. She learns that Victorine was actually a painter herself, but none of her works have survived. Stella sets out to investigate who she was and find her lost paintings. Her search leads her to Shakespeare and Company, a famous bookstore owned by George Whitman where artists and writers called “Tumbleweeds” often live.

Stella extends her stay in Paris and becomes a Tumbleweed herself, staying at Shakespeare and Company and finding a community among the other artists. After some initial wariness toward Jules, Stella befriends him, and he offers to help her with her search for Victorine’s paintings. As she embarks on her search and becomes acclimated to life as a Tumbleweed, she meets a slew of renowned writers and discovers her talent for cooking. Upon learning that Stella has never met her real father, George Whitman suggests that she try to locate him. James Baldwin visits the store and recounts a time when he met Stella’s mother, recalling that she was in a relationship with a handsome chef.

Stella’s investigation into Victorine’s life continues, and but she only finds accounts written by men that paint Victorine in a negative light and fail to mention her artistic accomplishments. Stella scours the churches of Paris looking for Victorine’s baptismal records, finally locating the neighborhood where she grew up and where she lived at the end of her life. Meanwhile, Stella and Jules take a trip to the south of France together, and he gives Stella his late wife’s clothing. Stella realizes that his late wife was Séverine, the previous owner of the black Dior dress she had tried on. He admits that he was shocked to see Stella wearing it when they first met and explains that his son’s fiancée has been selling Séverine’s clothes out of spite. They visit painter Richard Olney, who, according to James Baldwin, knew Celia and her chef paramour. While visiting with Richard, Stella asks about the chef. Richard describes the man, Django, and says that they only saw each other once, but Richard painted him. Stella realizes that her mother owned the painting; it hung in their apartment during Stella’s childhood.

Stella locates the house that Victorine lived in before she passed away but, to Stella’s horror, learns that everything in it has been either donated or destroyed in a bonfire. However, a nearby neighbor mentions that he found some paintings and took them to a flea market. Stella goes to the flea market and finds Victorine’s self-portrait, in which Victorine looks self-assured and triumphant. Stella is overjoyed and works up the courage to locate Django.

Jules and Stella go to the restaurant where Django works. When the chef approaches, Stella asks him about Celia. Django becomes emotional, saying that he never knew he had a daughter. He embraces Stella completely, making an effort to form a bond with her and be part of her life. Though Stella is initially overwhelmed, they soon become close and bond over their shared love of cooking. Stella decides to stay in Paris, and she and Django open a restaurant together named Chez Django. After a successful opening night, Jules’s son Jean-Marie presents Stella with the black Dior dress, now with her own name on the label.