Rating: 
Summary: Pleasing but not fulfilling
Review: Like Water for Chocolate is a soap opera type novel filled with love and above all- cooking. Although the storyline is interesting and one of suspense the novel lacks a deeper meaning. Tita, the main character, spends her whole life longing for love. However, when it knocks on her door she refuses. Thus, the vicious cycle of longing and waiting repeats itself. Instead of supporting the main character, feelings of irritation are stirred in the reader by Tita's inability to win the man of her dreams. Like water for Chocolate is a good beach book but that is the only place you should take this novel. For my fellow AP English students, I would not recommend this novel. It lacks the more serious themes and it leaves little to interpret. Nevertheless, Like Water for Chocolate is your best bet for an entertaining book to read with a tragic love story in the revolutionary Mexico.
Rating: 
Summary: Thinking Book
Review: This novel encompasses all aspects that were rare in American Literature at the time. Fantasy, romanticism, and exaggeration are all incorporated into the novel to attract diverse readers. The novel may seem a little bizarre at first due to the embellisments but it is made clear early on that they are vital to the story as a whole. It's through these embellisments that the true emotions of the characters are revealed. The novel is an allegory for it is based on two different levels. The deeper level of the novel is a little harder to understand for it is hidden by all sorts of meaningless details. However, once that barrier is broken down, and all the symbolism is understood, the book is very enjoyable. We personally admired the extent of development of Tita's character. Her strength and courage to stand up to Mama Elena has inspired us to stand up for what we believe in as well. This novel requires a second reading to assure that all hidden meanings are discovered. If you're looking for a light summer reading book, this is definitely not the book for you. However, if you enjoy a book which entails some sort of thought process, this is the perfect book for you. As a bonus you will receive some delicious recipes!
Rating: 
Summary: A love Story
Review: A Love Story I have read this book for my World Literature class and I liked it . The book that I read was Like Water For Chocolate. I like this novel because of the format and how Laura Esquivel expresses herself through magical realism. It gives the reader a sense of imagination and creativity. This book interested me a lot that I had to finish it on my own. That is something that I never do. The best part is the cooking recipes because I like to cook. My favorite recipe was the stuffed peppers because that is my favorite dish. When I finished reading that book I couldn't resist to see the movie. At first I thought that the myth of being the only child was not true and now that I read this book it showed me that it is true. I couldn't imagine the sadness of the girl when she wanted to get married and her mother wouldn't let her. It sounds kind of sad and maybe any girl that had to go through that felt traumatized. In my opinion any girl that wants to get married should get married without anybody saying anything to them. The book had a good, interesting plot and it made it fun for me to read. I hope they do the second part to this book. The last words that the narrator said were, "She will stay alive as long as her recipes are being cooked." This left me with a thought of my grandmother and her recipes. She would like someone to keep her recipes alive. I recommend people to read this book and after you do you'll find yourself recommending it to others. I know that I will recommend this book to somebody that I love and will understand the feeling that I had for this story.
Rating:
Summary: Magical Realism
Review: Alma Salinas From:Harbor City Ca. May 17, 2001 Not long ago my English class and I read a very interesting book full of magical realism and characters which came alive in every chapter. This book was writing by Laura Esquivel a great Mexican author. The title of the book is Like Water for Chocolate. This book was translated from Spanish to English. It’s Spanish title is Aqua para Chocolate. When reading this book it kept me and the class interested at all times, we would comment to our teacher Mrs. Lenhard that this book wasn’t like any other book we had read before. Every in class including I would make comments about the characters, the magical realism used and the situation. My favorite character was Geltrudis. She was my favorite character Because she loved Tita and she had a strong demanding character like her mother. Geltrudis shroud this by becoming general in the war and running away with a soldier. Tita the main character of the book seems to have great bad luck that seems it’s never going away and what makes her keep going is the love she gives and receives from Pedro. Predo got married to Tita’s older sister Rosaura just to be close to Tita which her mom didn’t allow her to marry since she was the youngest and was suppose to take care of her mother till she dies. It’s tradition. I recommend this book to anyone that likes Magical realimc. If your life is tragical end is miserable but you have love you would survive. This book is a wonder full book to read and share with someone else. If you love cooking or food in this book recipes are given and you can even prepare them yourself. If you are looking for a book you can coddle up to and won’t be boring go ahead and read this book it is really worth it.
Rating: 
Summary: mystical realism
Review: I will have to admit that I could not put the book down at first. The tragic love story stuff I can get into, but the mystical realism i can not. Born on a flood of tears.....her tears spoiling the food.......the room glowing from the passionate love-making......and the rest of that crazy jazz started to annoy me. Of course i finished the book, but when Tita didn't marry the doctor, I was turned off. Sorry Laura Esquivel, I guess I am a realist.
Rating:
Summary: One of my Top 10 picks for best fiction of the century!
Review: I read this book a long time ago, but, after hearing the reviewer from Mexico call it "absurdly overrated", apparently because we're not from an "exotic locale" like him/her (come to Chicago and discover life, sweetheart!), I had to write my own review. "Like Water for Chocolate" is almost impossible to describe in words- it's like a marvelous dish that cannot be explained- it has to be experienced. Tita, our heroine, is the youngest of three daughters in the de la Garza family in Mexico. Their father has long since been dead, and their mother, Mama Elena, is a castrating, overbearring and cynical woman; more "Nurse Ratched" than any kind of parental role model. For this reason, Tita is closest to Nacha, the old family cook, who practically raised Tita and did so among the smells and warmth of the kitchen. It is for this reason that Tita grows up with such an attachment to the hearth and to be, of course, a naturally fabulous cook. In the de la Garza family, tradition dictates that the youngest girl may never marry; her lot in life is to care for her aged mother until Mama Elena kicks the bucket- even after the old bag is gone, Tita is still denied marriage. This proves to be a particularly cruel twist if fate when Tita meets Pedro Musquiz, a gorgeous local boy. When she sees him, Tita tells Nacha that she felt "like dough plunged in boiling oil"- it's a heat and intensity she can't control. However, when Pedro and his father come to ask Mama Elena for Tita's hand in marriage, Mama Elena calmly tells them that Tita is forbidden to marry; she offers instead Tita's older sister Rosaura. Pedro, being young and naive, thinks this will be the only way he can be close to Tita, so he agrees. To punish Tita for deigning to break tradition, Mama Elena sentences Tita to make Rosaura and Pedro's wedding cake. As Tita stirs the batter, she weeps uncontrollably, and these tears drop right into the batter. The next day, at the wedding, the guests who eat the cake end up vomitting all over the joint- all, except Tita. This type bizzare effect with the consumption of Tita's food is the theme throughout the book. Tita uses her love of cooking to communicate to Pedro how she feels for him. The novel is told in 12 chapters- one for each month- and each chapter has a recipe that is prepared throughout. I thoroughly loved this novel- NOT because I'm boring, or because I live in a "less exotic locale"- rather, because it is a beautiful tale of true love, deceit, excrutiating emotional pain, triumph, and the heart of the family- the kitchen. Read for yourself and decide.
Rating:
Summary: Weird, but in a good way...
Review: I really had no idea what this novel was about when I started reading it. My book club chose it as their monthly selection, so I went into it blindly. Imagine my surprise... Like Water for Chocolate is part love story/part fantasy that delves into the lives of a Mexican family during the Mexican Revolution. Tita, the youngest of three daughters, is the victim of harsh family tradition--she cannot marry and is subject to a life of taking care of her mother until the day she dies. What a shame for poor Tita, who is desperately in love with Pedro. So Pedro marries Tita's older sister in order to stay close to Tita. What happens after that can only happen in Soap Opera Land. Very mystical, erotic and enjoyable until the last page, Like Water for Chocolate will definitely be remembered for a long time to come. Laura Esquivel has done a wonderful job writing this exceptionally creative, imaginative tale. Now I'm off to see how the movie compares!
Rating: 
Summary: Absurdly overrated
Review: I can see why people from non-Latin American countries are drawn to this book, especially those who live in places without anything "exotic" at all. But I'm sorry to tell them that this is not and should NOT be taken as representative of good Latin American literature (much as there is). Unfortunately, the corny and bad movie had good timing, just when the "latino" exotism became hot. And there you have Americans and Europeans thinking this is a good product of Mexican culture, ignoring really good writers and philosophers who don't talk about corny (I have to use this word repeatedly, since it accurately portrays the book) "erotic" recipes. The plot is well known thanks to the movie. It reads like a bad imitation of García Márquez's style, without the mastery at writing. If you want to read a good mix of food and erotism, try for instance "Under the jaguar sun", by Italo Calvino, a short story set in Oaxaca, Mexico. Or read good Latin American writers, not this fake and utterly failed exploitation of exotism for easy bucks.
Rating:
Summary: A Touching, Attention Grabber
Review: This book is one of the few college reading assignments that I read...and remember. A wonderful tale of a strong woman, love, cooking, determination, restraint, and much more. Esquivel's words reach every emotion and sense--including humor. The movie is well done, too. A must-read for every young woman, at least!
Rating:
Summary: a tragic life told in food
Review: food has always been a favorite metaphor for writers (and moviemakers). we have to eat to survive. in Like Water for Chocolate, food is the metaphor for the passions of Tita, the youngest of 3 daughters. Forced by her tyranical mother to forsake her true love, Tita watches as he marries her oldest sister. she pours her emotions into the food. in every chapter, her emotions are poured into the food she makes. it is only through her cooking, that Tita can express her feelings. This is a good book about the tyranny of tradition and the liberation of food. i would recmmend this book w/o reservation the recipes are pretty useless to the modern cook. if you want to concot some of the food mentioned, i would check a mexican cookbook for the modern equivalent.
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