 |
|
Title: Like Water for Chocolate: A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances, and Home Remedies
ISBN: 038542017X
Author:
Laura Esquivel
Publicate Date: 1994-02-01
Publish: 1994-02-01
List Price: $13.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.0
Format: Paperback
 |
|
|
|
|
Amazon Lowest New Price: $5.50
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $3.26
Amazon Merchant Price: $11.16
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Customer Review: |
|
1: Love is food for the soul
_Like Water for Chocolate_ is a sensuous love story, set in northern Mexico. The story is of Tita, the youngest of three daughters, who is raised at the side of the family's chef and therefore learns the art (and secrets) of good cooking. Tita falls in love with Pedro, a neighbor, but is forbidden from marrying him - family tradition holds that the youngest must never marry in order to care for her mother until she dies. In order to remain near Tita, Pedro marries Tita's older sister, Rosuara. Tita's emotions - her love, frustration, bitterness and joy - are literally shared through the food she prepares as the love she and Pedro share never dies.
Each chapter begins with a recipe, the details of its preparation intertwined with a story related to Tita's quest to be united with Pedro. The connection between food - its textures, flavours, concoctions and ingredients - with love, sex, longing and passion work well and make for a sensual read, a device I really enjoyed. There is an element of the fantastic as well, as Esquivel freely and liberally exaggerates and plays with events and characters, much as a good cook improvises from the written recipe.
A very enjoyable read - recommended.
|
2: Charm And Quirkiness
The title of the book offers a fitting and versatile metaphor for the book. In Spanish, como aqua para chocolate, refers to the passions, sexual or anger, that boil over. Chocolate only melts with boiling water. Mama Elena, the domineering, controlling force of a hacienda in Mexico, suppresses her daughters but particualarly Tita De La Garza, the central character who is not allowed to "reach the boiling point" of her passions, particularly with respect to Pedro Musquiz to whom she has a passionate attachment reciprocated by him. Mama Elena forces Tita into spinsterhood so that Tita can take care of her mother as she ages. To be close to Tita, Pedro marries her sister, Rosaura. The adventures spin off from there and there is a magical element to many of them, including the exceptional recipes that Tita uses for the residents and guests of the hacienda. The book is well-written and deserves its international fame.Translator's KissSimply Irresistible
|
3: You'll enjoy this!
Atmospheric, magical and sensual, Like Water for Chocolate is the story of Tita's loves and family on a ranch in Mexico. As the youngest daughter in her family Tita is doomed to care for her mother until she dies. Unfortunately Tita meets Pedro and it is full blown passion at first sight. Unfortunately life had other plans and the doomed lovers cannot be together. What happens is Tita's love and emotions are transferred into her legendary cooking.
|
4: YUmmy!
This book makes me wanna cook!!!
The way in which the food is describe is DELICIOUS!!!! Delicioso, sabroso!!!
Loved it.....each chapter keeps you wondering....nice style of writing!
A+
Have to watch the movie now.
:-)
|
5: An endearing little book
A friend of mine lent me this book a few months ago and I never got around to reading it. I gave it back to her when we graduated from college, but I still wanted to read it, so I bought a copy. It didn't sit around for too long this time; I read it in a day.
Tita grew up in the kitchen, surrounded by her love of food. She is overjoyed when she falls in love with a man, until she learns that as the youngest daughter, she is intended to stay home and take care of her mother - forever. This little book, which is told in twelve chapters, each a different month of the year, with a recipe for each one, is another endearing exercise in magical realism from a Latin American storyteller.
The reader knows straight away that Tita will never be married. This gives the entire story a bittersweet feel; we know her relationships aren't going to succeed before they even happen. Regardless, I did find it charming. Tita is lovely and I grew to care for her very quickly. Her family is very peculiar and all members have strictly defined personalities. At first, it seems Mama Elena is a stereotypically horrible mother, but later on we learn that there is more to her story, too.
The magical realism adds a special dimension to the story. I hadn't expected it going in to the book. As I've mentioned before, I read most books without knowing anything about them because I largely read from recommendations and generally avoid reviews or even reading the back cover. The supernatural aspects make it clear that this isn't real life, but they don't take away from the universal romantic experiences that Tita endures.
The format is interesting. This book is certainly a novel, but the fact that it is split into twelve equal chapters means that it's easier to break down if you don't have much time to read. I haven't tried any of the recipes and I'm not sure that I will, particularly given that the instructions are spread throughout each chapter and are potentially hard to follow when in a hurry. If you were reading for a book club, however, it might be fun to have a small party around the book and have each member try a different recipe. At least, that's what I would do.
I would recommend this book, I think; it's a light read, but at the same time heartfelt and moving.
|
|
|
|
|
