Like Water for Chocolate
Like Water for Chocolate is a novel about a young girl named Tita who finds love in a young man named Pedro. Unfortunately, due to an old tradition in her family, she is not allowed to pursue a relationship with Pedro, because as the youngest daughter she is to devote her life to carrying for her mother until she dies. To make matters worse, Tita’s mother, Mama Elena, arranges Pedro to marry her eldest daughter Rosaura. Not only is Tita forced to face her sister and lover every day, but she is unable to do anything about it.
I absolutely love this book! I was required to read it for one of my World Literature classes and was told so many great things about the book beforehand. This book was the first magical-realism novel I had ever read. I’ve seen magical-realism movies before, but I’d never actually read a book of it. Although, I cannot relate to Tita’s situation, I was able to connect with her emotions because of how well-written the novel was.
The entire story is written in third person (Tita’s niece) and the way she narrates the story is so deep and detailed that it was impossible for me to not get sucked into the story. The events that took place were all unforeseen which kept me on my toes. I went the entire novel rooting for Mama Elena to change her ways and Rosaura to accept that Pedro didn’t love her and for Tita and Pedro to finally be together, but the storyline is filled with so much more than just Tita and Pedro trying to be together. The writer allows bonds to be formed between the readers and the characters to where we either genuinely love the character or we dislike them. Nacha, which was the family cook and the one who taught Tita everything she knows in the kitchen is a character I developed a bond with. She’s compassionate and understanding and acts more like a mother to Tita than Mama Elena does. In the story she passes away, and the feelings of loneliness and abandonment Tita felt, I felt as well.
The story also incorporates food into the magical-realism theme it delivers. Every chapter begins with a recipe, which I found really interesting. Everything Tita feels is carried out in the meals she prepares. For example, on her sister’s wedding day, she was devastated and she cried as she prepared the feast and mistakenly shed tears into the food. The guests all began crying uncontrollably as they ate her food.
I could read this book over and over again and never get tired of reading it. It’s a story that allows me to escape and lose myself within the novel. It’s so untraditional and different and the story is so much more than just a love story. Tita is the epitome of a strong girl who develops into an even stronger woman and this story delivers that image so well. I think every woman could relate to Tita’s strength in some form or another.
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