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Summary: LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE - LAURA ESQUIVEL.
Review: Laura Esquivels first novel, LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE, became Mexico's number one bestseller in 1990. It is a story where family traditions and family secrets are shared and broken throughout the novel, where the combination of food, love and romance are successfully combined. The book leaves the reader with an intense view of life in Mexico during the early twentieth century, taking place during the Mexican revolution.Tita, the third child of the De La Garza family, is born earlier than expected on the kitchen table. Coincidentally, Tita grows up to be a master chef. Tita has the ability to express her love and feelings through the meals that she prepares. Through family traditions the youngest daughter is to stay single to take care of the mama. This tradition is not brought to Tita's attention until after she has fallen in love. Mama Elena, a very controlling woman, forbids the marriage of the soul mated couple and arranges for the marriage of Rosuara, the older sister, with Pedro, Tita's true love. Pedro accepts the arrangement, however not for love, for plans to get closer to Tita. The preparation of Pedro and Rosuara's wedding cake is one of Tita's ability of expressing her feelings where the tears affect every slice of the cake. The making of the wedding cake is a form of magic realism that is used throughout the novel. Laura Esquivel describes the characters with some detail and sets an image of the story for it to be deduced by the reader. The book can be easily followed by the monthly instalments of recipes right through the novel. It will make you laugh and cry and feel the anger that Tita suffers from a frustrated love relationship. The book is an enjoyable experience regardless of the reader's age, gender or culture.
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Summary: Hot and Spicy Romantic Banquet
Review: "Like Water For Chocolate" a novel that is cleverly constructed by Esquivel and an encouraging first attempt at a novel. A spicy encounter of a condemned love affair that even destiny would keep these two lovers apart. The story is set in the turn of the century in Mexico. It is a compelling tale of a family of females growing up when family tradition, wondrous romance and sensational remedies and recipes are passed on. The novel uses customary recipes in a diary format and a dash of magical realism to tell an account of a forbidden love that will touch the reader and make them want to laugh and to cry. The story of Tita and Pedro is made out to be a true tale. The characters seem real and the story seems true. It is an account of a life experience that I think everyone can relate too. It is a story about wanting something that you can't have. One of the reasons that Tita and Pedro are isolated from one another is because of Tita's Mother Mama Elena's family tradition. The tradition of the youngest daughter not marring because they are to look after their mother to death. However, Tita is determined to end the dreadful tradition. Mama Elena, Tita's evil mother, refuses to let Tita marry Pedro because of the Family Tradition. However, she offers Tita's spiteful elder sister Rosaura for him and he accepts. The deceitful deeds of this family, the helpful hint in the kitchen from Nacha and Chencha and a tad of support from her strong willed sister Gertrudis helped her to spice up the kitchen and find love again. This book is an account of a life that comes down to making a decision between a man that loves her and she can have or waiting for the one she desires. If you are one who leaves everything up to fate and destiny and enjoy a touch of love and romance, this novel will catch your attention by the raunchy yet enchanting magical encounters. It is a novel not to be missed because of the succulent and juicy last chapter where all is revealed. It is an enjoyable and realistic novel that I loved and couldn't put down.
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Summary: A Mexican love story to make your mouth water...
Review: Like Water for Chocolate is an appetising tale of two forbidden lovers struggling to overcome nasty tradition by sharing their love for each other through Mexican cuisine. Much like a Mexican style twisted version of Romeo and Juliet. Laura Esquivel sets the scene during the revolution in Piedras Niegras, a typical town of northern Mexico. She writes her first novel in metaphorical monthly instalments, of rich traditional Mexican recipes designed to illustrate the passion of food, sex, magic and love entwined in a love story for the daring readers. Tita De La Garza, the youngest of the 3 daughters is condemned to a lifetime of dedicated hard work looking after her mother until she dies. The love she shares with Pedro is strong enough to send them crazy with the thought of not being able to live a life together. As much as Pedro would love to run away with Tita and forget about the farcical Mexican tradition, morals, ethics and respect stand in their way. Pedro's final plan to marry Tita's sister Rosaura to be closer to her causes bitterness, jealousy, shame and emotional stress amongst the two families. Esquivel combines the essential ingredients of humour, jealousy, passion, love and hate in a truly alluring novel. She tells the story as if you are living in the house and keeps you wondering what might become of the forbidden lovers. Mama Elena will make you hate her, Gertrudis will make you giddy, Rosaura will make you feel sorry for her and Tita and Pedro will make you feel warmth inside you as they have. I strongly recommend you taste Like Water for Chocolate and indulge on this appetising story which is truly food for thought.
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Summary: Stunning
Review: Enchantingly romantic,Laura Esquivels characters are not so much swept up in the waves of passion, as dashed against the rocks. The plot moves elegantly through a lifetime of forbidden love and explosions of illicit lust - some with truly magical consequences! This future classic, is perhaps the most imaginative love story ever written. An old fashioned, un- put downable page turner, and must read.
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Summary: Wonderfully sensual and inviting
Review: Laura Esquivel successfully combines sex, food, romance, and storytelling in Like Water for Chocolate. It gives the reader such a vivid picture of what life was like in early twentieth century Mexico. The book tells a tale of denied romance between two star-crossed people and the recipies that unite them metaphysically and spiritually. The descriptions in the book heighten the senses. It even has a classic protagonist and villain that most peope seem to enjoy in books. This is a recipe book, a story and a piece of Mexican culture. Not to be missed.
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Summary: the cup of Chocolate
Review: The Cup of Chocolate My name is Claudia Lieva and I had read the book "Like Water For Chocolate in Mrs.Lenhardt class. The book of water for chocolate to me was a well writing, because was a book that had fun went you read Ed and the characters were good they were the kind of people from long time ago, but still the book is very interesting and it give you a reason to read it. I red it because is not a book like the others authors the reason that I red it was because the family were so different. The family from today they are so hard to understand because now we don't even see that, like Mama Elena saying that the last daughter is not going to get marry because she has to take care of her into she died, to me was so bad because in my family I am the last daughter and I wouldn't like to hear my mom saying that I has to take care of her until she died.The family has to be together always and the mother was not a good mother and Tita was the kind of daugther that always was listened to her mother, so she didn't have no life.
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Summary: Mrs. Lenhardt
Review: Majority of the books I have read in High School was either boring or too long in length. "Like Water for Chocolate" caught my attention with romance, passion, and excitement. It's a Mexican love story involving traditional family cooking recipes which is used symbolically for love. Pedro and Tita were deeply in love but struggles to make it come true. Interference from an evil mother who did not approve their marriage kept a distance between them. Pedro decides to marry Titas sister in order to stay close to Tita. With mother under suspicion of their secret love, Tita and Pedro do not suceed in revealing their love until the end of the story. I expected this book to be boring but I was impressed by it because I voluntarily finished the book. Love is presented in many ways in this story which played a big role in making this a great book to read. I recommend this book to High School teachers to let their students read this book instead of giving them books like, "Brave New World" which will not get their full attention.
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Summary: The Cup of Chocolate
Review: My name is Claudia Lieva and I had read the book "Like Water For Chocolate in Mrs.Lenhardt class. The book of water for chocolate to me was a well writing, because was a book that had fun went you read Ed and the characters were good they were the kind of people from long time ago, but still the book is very interesting and it give you a reason to read it. I red it because is not a book like the others authors the reason that I red it was because the family were so different. The family from today they are so hard to understand because now we don't even see that, like Mama Elena saying that the last daughter is not going to get marry because she has to take care of her into she died, to me was so bad because in my family I am the last daughter and I wouldn't like to hear my mom saying that I has to take care of her until she died.The family has to be together always and the mother was not a good mother and Tita was the kind of daugther that always was listened to her mother, so she didn't have no life.
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Summary: Family Traditions
Review: In my 12th grade English class we had to read Like Water For Chocolate. It is an amazing book about family traditions, magic, and romance. One of the main traditions is that the youngest born girl has to take care of the mom until she dies. Well, in this book Tita was the youngest born girl who had to take care of Mama Elena. Mama Elena made Tita do everything. She learned how to cook and clean when she was very young. Everything she knew was because of her best friend, Nacha, who was the family's maid. The chapters in this book are organized by months, January through December, also every chapter has its own recipe. It tells you the ingredients and then how to make it. Tita falls in love with a man named Pedro. Pedro is also in love with Tita but can not marry her because of her having to take care of Mama Elena. Pedro loved Tita so much that he decided to marry her oldest sister, Rosaura, just so he could be close to her. Pedro would always compliment Tita on the way she cooked. Mama Elena did not like the way they would act toward each other so she sent Pedro and Rosaura to live in Texas. Tita hated her mother because of what she had done to her. This book is the best book I have ever read. I recommend it to everyone that loves to laugh and read about romance. I am glad that we had to read it in my English class. I rate this book on a scale of one to five a five because of how different it is and it deals with a Mexican family's tradition. I also feel that this book is a lot better to understand it if you watch the movie after you read it. I feel everyone should read this book and watch the movie.
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Summary: Food for the imagination, is just as tasty.
Review: Laura Esquivel cooks up a novel like no other. "Like Water for Chocolate", is a sensual, entertaining story that may leave a sensitive person in tears of sadness and joy, or is it the onions. The story follows a young girl named Tita De la Graza. Tita is faced with a life that would remind one of Cinderella, minus the stepsisters, stepmother, and royal balle. Tita, being the youngest of her family, is cursed with her family's dreadful tradition, that states that the youngest daughter may never marry unless she cares for her mother until she dies. Tita finds love with a young man named Pedro, these are two who are made for each other, but the only thing and person that stand in their way of marrying and being happy is Tita's mother and her tradition. Along with every chapter the reader is greeted with something very original; a recipe to old mexican dishes. Now no one knows if these recipes are true and valid, but this exquisite novel is truly a reader's choice worth 5 stars out of a scale of 1-4. So heres a recipe to a good time: 1 novel of "Like Water...", some free time, let yourself read for a while and let the novel simmer your imagination with the magical realism that takes place in this wonderful story.
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