Charlotte Au Chocolat

November 15, 2011
Memoir of a childhood spent at the legendary Harvard Square restaurant Upstairs at the Pudding. Silver brings back to life an era when Harvard Square wasn't filled with the soulless plate-glass windows of national banks--when local businesses were chaotic, working on trade, a little dusty, yet full of human spirit and character. The book will no doubt enjoy a prominent place in the windows of the Harvard Coop, and fans of Upstairs, a local institution that closed in 2001, will likely enjoy the backstage view of the beloved restaurant. As a memoir, though, the book is lacking. The author provides many lighthearted stories about long nights spent amusing herself in the restaurant, but she rarely re-examines the events in the light of adulthood. Silver gives equal attention to her youthful party dresses and her emotional inner life, with a slight edge to the party dresses, while significant events, such as court dates or divorces, are mentioned in passing. The author presents her stream of anecdotes in a straightforward way, rarely offering critical distance or narrative context. For example, Silver drops a description of an electrifying moment in her burgeoning sexual awareness in the middle of a chapter about mice in the restaurant. It's almost as if the author doesn't want to fully share herself with readers. Like its namesake dessert, a confection--enjoyable but lacking substance.

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September 1, 2011

Recalling Upstairs at the Pudding, a chandeliered restaurant in Harvard Square owned and run by her mother, Silver discusses the offbeat staff, her growing resentment that so much of her mother's time went to the restaurant, and her understanding, finally, of how much her mother had sacrificed to keep business and family intact. Sounds charming and refreshingly venom free, and who doesn't like to read about food?

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