1001 Challenge: Like Water for Chocolate

Unlike last month (and the month before that), I decided to start the summer off on the right foot and keep up with my monthly readings. For this month, I chose Like Water for Chocolate because I had seen the movie a couple of years ago and was surprised to find the book in the 1001 books you must read before you die. I remembered not liking the movie, but I am a huge believer that a book and "its" movie are two completely different entities that should rarely be compared, so I took a stab. And I came back with tepid feelings.

What was so intriguing about the book when I first picked it up is that the cover reads (at least my edition of it) "a novel in monthly installments with recipes, romances, and home remedies". The plot revolves around the character Tita who is the youngest of three daughters. Due to this, her family tradition dictates that she must never marry but instead has to take care of her mother until her mother dies. Unfortunately, she falls in love with a boy named Pedro whom she knows she will never marry. In addition, she is her mother's least favorite daughter and the one on whom her mother takes out her anger. The only place that Tita can find solace is in the kitchen where the housekeeper (her surrogate mother) showers her in love and guidance in cooking. As Tita faces more tragedies (her sister marries Pedro, her mentor dies, etc.), she escapes through her cooking. Magically, when people eat her food they experience the emotions that she was feeling when she made the food. On nights when she is sad, everyone at the table begins weeping. Other nights she is filled with love and lust, and that is passed on to those who eat her food. At first, Tita doesn't understand her power but she soon is able to harness it and use it to speak for her when she is unable to speak for herself.

My satisfaction with this book fluctuated. At times I found the recipes at the beginning of each chapter to be intriguing and endearing, while at others I thought they were annoying and kitschy. I thought that Tita's ability to affect others through her food was an excellent character trait and certainly carried me through the novel. However, there was no one in the novel that I actually liked and wasn't emotionally invested in the story or the characters. I think that it is worth reading because the technique is interesting and something that few others have tackled. However, I won't be re-reading this one.

-DLP