Tag: Like Water for Chocolate

Podcast 12 Show Notes

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 For episode 12 we read Laura Esquivel’s Like Water for Chocolate

About the Author

Laura Esquivel is a Mexican novelist, politician, and screenwriter.  Laura has a passion for children which is why she trained to be a teacher, founded a children’s theater workshop, and has written/produced many dramas for children. After Laura’s father’s death she was inspired to write. Like Water for Chocolate was her first novel and it became a best seller in Mexico and the U.S.

Book Look

This book was a work of art from the inside out. Uniquely this is a story presented as a cookbook and family history.  At its core this novel was a historical fiction filled with magical realism. The cover immediately draws you in with the colors and women cooking.

Bookmark

  • “My grandmother had a very interesting theory; she said that each of us is born with a box of matches inside us but we can’t strike them all by ourselves; just as in the experiment, we need oxygen and a candle to help. In this case, the oxygen, for example, would come from the breath of the person you love; the candle could be any kind of food, music, caress, word, or sound that engenders the explosion that lights one of the matches. For a moment we are dazzled by an intense emotion. A pleasant warmth grows within us, fading slowly as time goes by, until a new explosion comes along to revive it. Each person has to discover what will set off those explosions in order to live, since the combustion that occurs when one of them is ignited is what nourishes the soul. That fire, in short, is its food. If one doesn’t find out in time what will set off these explosions, the box of matches dampens, and not a single match will ever be lighted.” pg 115

POV

Sam and Felicia both enjoyed the character ,Nacha, who was the family cook and the real mother figure the main character could connect to. In addition, Sam loved John, a doctor who was uniquely kind to Tita, the main character and was always there to support Tita. Without a doubt the least favorite character was Mama Elena who was the source of abuse and trauma in Tita’s life. Sam also was not a fan of any other characters whose motives seemed a bit unsupportive and undesirable.

Deep Dive

Like Water for Chocolate was a fantastical folk tale that incorporated family, food, love and life into a book. Sam and Felicia discuss how the magic realism in the book kept things intriguing. The story was filled with ghosts and a few other unknown elements that keep a reader engaged. The novel also includes great Latina representation in the characters, history, and writing style. The words on each page flowed in a beautiful and unique way. Sam and Felicia also go over the darker elements in the book and how it takes a bit of strength to finish the novel but it is worth it in the end.

Like Water for Chocolate | Book Review by Sam

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About:

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel is a Mexican magical realism novel that follows the life of Tita and her powers through cooking. Each chapter opens with a recipe and then we learn why the meal was so impactful in Tita’s story. Like Water for Chocolate is an intricately woven story of love, family, and betrayal.

Review:

This Mexican story details the life of Tita who is the youngest daughter of a traditional Mexican family. The way in which we are introduced to Tita should warn us that her story will be tragic. She comes into the world crying in the kitchen. This will be significant throughout the novel as we realize that Tita’s emotions are imparted into the meals she makes and Impacts the emotions of the other characters when they eat it. The characters become overcome with anger or lust.

This novel is full of romance, drama, food, and magic. As the youngest daughter, we learn that it will be Tita’s responsibility to take care of her mother. That means that Tita will not be permitted to marry until her mother dies. This is the first major problem as it becomes evident that Tita has already fallen in love with Pedro. Let me just say that Pedro is a menace. When he cannot marry Tita he marries her sister, Rosaura, under the guise that at least he will be able to stay close to Tita. How heartbreaking. One sister has to watch her love be with someone else and the other sister has to live with knowing she will never be loved fully by her husband. 

As the chef of the family, Tita is tasked with making food for the wedding, including the cake. The strong emotions that Tita has and her cooking skills are interwoven throughout the story. Esquivel has given Tita a great gift, but ultimately it is used to influence everyone’s emotions but it does not ever lead to where I would like. I would have loved for Tita to realize she is too good for the world on the ranch (specifically Pedro and her Mama Elena) and move on from them. 

Not all of the characters were likable, but you know a story is intriguing when you haven’t necessarily fallen in love with the characters, yet you just have to know what happens – so you continue reading. There are moments that give us a peek into what freedom or love could be like. In the end we get not a perfect story but what I would call a human story on what it would be like if we gave into our every desire or emotion. 

Overall the novel was magnificently engaging. Sometimes, I don’t enjoy magical realism because I’d just like the author to choose to have a fantasy story or not. However, this story kept me captivated from beginning to end and I finished it within two days. Tita’s story is tragic (to me), but absolutely worth the read.