Awww. Very sweet story. Great job!

Cute. Good story

"I have always hated men. They are simply the weaker gender. And yet, they have a way of making women seem lesser, somehow."

Oh. My. Gosh. You just summed out the whole point of this world in three sentences. My exact morals. HOW DO MEN DO THAT? Its so stupid! Boys are stupid, yet they DO make "women seem lesser." SOMEHOW. HOW?

Now that I'm done ranting, I will compliment you on your FABULOUS fic. I could TOTALLY hear Collette saying all that! I even read it under my breath in her French accent. . WONDERFUL! Bravo. :)

Amazing probing into Collette's mind! You can tell exactly what she is feeling at every moment, and imagine the scenes as you read it. Good stuff.

I liked this fic very much. After reading this, it's not hard to imagine the way Colette came to feel for Alfredo after a distrust of men for so long. Very well written, and I can tell that you really thought this out before you wrote it. A pleasurable read. :)

Your concept is nice-Colette's journal, and your ear for voice has just about got the cadence from Jeneane Garofolo's interpretation of the script. However, painting Colette as abused and having a hatred of men, I think, is oversimplifying her character. Her experiences with being overlooked as a possible chef draw from the character's film dialogue, and as such, I'm more ready to believe them. That said, I would also have liked to see you extrapolate her thoughts about times we didn't see, little things about Linguini she liked from the start, conversations we never saw, her emotional conflict throughout their relationship. Not to mention the irony that, a) her fears of him not needing her teaching anymore are coming true and she's accepting that because she's with him, and b) that women are expected to do the cooking at home, but aren't respected as chefs.

All in all, not a bad little story...just a little thin.

I'm going to be reviewing this work in several pieces, starting with Entry 1.

I am genuinely and truly loving the wording of your works! It is so close to mine that I can basically feel what you're going to write next and where the story is going to flow into.

On a somewhat mean note, I know you were only trying to follow the movie and portray Colette's thoughts on this touchy matter of not trusting the male gender (sometimes I feel the same way), but I'm feeling that it's all happening way too quickly. In only the first entry, she is hinting at the fact that she is beginning to fall for Alfredo. I'm not big on romance anyways, but as a critic I must appreciate all kinds of genres. :)

I like how the italicized "Non" (ending with a period!) draws you right along into the next paragraph and shows you that Colette is a woman who sticks to her guns; although that tough and unforgiving personality quickly begins to melt by the end of the journal entry (this is one area where I'm disappointed).

In its entirety, "Entry 1" is great. Like I always say, keep up the good work; and I can hardly wait to read more of your stuff!

Sincerely,

-red-

"The Grim Reader... Not quite..."

Awesome chapter keep up the good work and update soon!

aw! so adorable!

I only have good things to say about this fic. Firstly I must compliment you on your excellent writing skills. The fic was cohesive, and the diary entries were a brilliant way to convey all the events of the movie. Secondly, I truly enjoyed this because it was actually in character. It's quite nice to see someone stick to the character. It makes the fic much more realistic and enjoyable. Lastly, thank you for using French properly. It really is a turn off when someone uses French completely incorrectly. So overall, brilliant job and I hope to see more stories from you!

Great writing. Like someone already said, It is like Colette really wrote this.

It's as if Colette were ACTUALLY writing this!

Aww.. that was adorable. Very IC too. "Le ropes" made me laugh. I'd like to see more sometime, if you are planning on writing more!

Thank you for this story "Collete"! You captured her emotions perfectly and made me rethink that entire scene from her perspective. It was a turning point in the movie, and while the theater is laughing about Remy's attempt to make Linguini play it cool and Linguini's efforts to explain his "secret" to her, no one is dwelling so much on Collete's inner turmoil. Write a new chapter! I read fan fiction to clear up aspects characters' personalities and to enjoy myself, so this really made my day. Thanks, and please write another chapter/entry!

~Sarah

Hey! I never noticed you'd written anything Ratatouille before. I keep combing the site with a fine-tooth comb. God, I wish they'd hurry up and give it a category.

Onwards: I really like this. And I really, really like the French bits! They remind me of the style of the movie and really make it sound authentic. I'm not sure about the 'mon cher journal', but I really like this section:

...My dreams would be abandoned, and my life devoted to some man who only wants to use me for his "needs" and call me his property. His submissive little wife. His Colette... more like his slave.

Non. I was wise. I decided not to take that route. I bought my pepper spray and learned self-defense - the hard way.

I love the italics on the "Non" - they don't show up in the review box - and I like the repetition of the "his" in the paragraph - the short sentences give a lot of passion, and reflect a harshness, and a stream-of-consciousness kind of angry thinking. They give emphasis, too: "his "needs"...his property... His submissive little wife. His Colette... his slave."

I like 'submissive little', too. and then the second paragraph, with all the past-tense verbs, in short sentences parallelling the first ones, but narrative now: "I was... I decided... I bought... learned." A life in miniature. And then I love the uncertainty that creeps in with "so I thought. And I still think! I don't know anymore."

Couple of things you could fix when you have a moment: "The stupid old professors (all male [comma] by the way) only let us few women do the preparatory chopping and peeling, praising the talentless [no comma. My hunch is that there was another adjective in here and then you cut it, but the comma remained.] boys for their overcooked veal that I could have made flawlessly." I actually love this paragraph. It elaborates the tirade that Colette delivered in the restaurant, and I think it sounds a lot like her – and the idea of the profs only letting the women do the chopping, etc., is a great concept and fits perfectly with canon.

In "But it helped me learn (early on, luckily) not to allow them too near to me, not to let them into my life... What [should be 'would'] happen? My dreams would be abandoned, and my life devoted to some man who only wants to use me for his "needs" and call me his property," the 'needs' is between quotation marks. Double quotes are used if you are quoting someone else verbatim; single quotes are used in the sense I think you mean, of 'so-called', as in 'so-called friend', or 'so-called needs'. In which case I think single wuotes would be better in here, as your Colette obviously means 'what he likes to call 'needs' but are really just an excuse to paw me without giving me any pleasure or caring how I feel'. And yes, that can be read clearly into your writing.

…"Linguini came in and changed everything. At first I thought nothing of him. Nothing good, nothing bad. [I'm not sure about that. Not love or anything like that, but her "You can't fire him!" tirade was a kind of defense of the underdog. Sympathy, at least. But hey, she could be deluding herself in her own journal' Heaven knows we all do.] But I was assigned to show him le ropes. [I think 'the ropes' would be better in here.] At that time, the shields came up because I knew that once again, this man would have to be in close proximity with me and that would mean the chauvinist in him (and I stand by the belief that all men are chauvinistic pigs) would try to get too close for my comfort.

I like the standing by the belief that all men are chauvinist pigs. Especially with the lame come-on that Linguini did try, leaning on the cutting board. "…how honored I am to be working with such a…" Oh puh-leeze, Alfredo!

S"till, I will not let my guard down. He is a man [comma] after all."

But as [time] has moved on, I began to realize - all the while kicking myself for it - this one is different. As stupid as it sounds.

I like the catching-herself between the dashes, and again in a separate sentence at the end.

But he genuinely respects me, and for once here is a man who admires me for my talent. I can tell! He follows my every word. I sense no other "intentions" from him. He seems so innocent and he is so polite. This is more of a gentleman than any other man I have met in my life. Mon dieu [comma] this sounds ridiculous, but it is true. I've grown fond of him and I want to help him succeed.

I love the 'Mon Dieu' in there. And the last line of this paragraph: very simple and honest.

PS. If you're interested, Horst said, "The plongeur won't be coming to you for advice anymore, eh, Colette? He's gotten all he needs." But I like her half-remembered line too.