Como Agua Para Chocolate
(Like Water For Chocolate)
by Laura Esquivel
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Laura Esquivel's 1989 novel Como Agua Para Chocolate (Like Water For Chocolate) is a masterpiece of magic realism that takes place in 1910 revolutionary Mexico. I should start by saying that magic realism is definitely not a style loved by all readers. Many people like it, but many people don't. Including me. Usually. However, I was still captivated by this story and was not at all put off by the sometimes strange, unrealistic, exaggerated, and fantastical events. I read this book for my Literary Criticism Spanish class and my professor was able to give us some insight into cultural differences in reactions to magic realism. This style is apparently much more common in Mexico where their values and beliefs foster acceptance of abstract, almost folkloric stories such as this one. In the United States, however, we are raised in a society of literalism where not everyone wants to suspend disbelief when reading a story. In general, we don't believe in the abstract effects that food has on the characters in this novel and their emotions. But for most Mexican readers, it's not all that strange. While reading this novel in its original Spanish form, I was convinced and I began to believe along with them. That, in itself, speaks tons for the power of the story. Laura Esquivel uses this style to her advantage and she executes it well. I watched the movie based on Como Agua Para Chocolate and it was terrible. Many scenes were awkward and laughably absurd while the corresponding scenes in the book were interesting and magical, if a tad unlikely and abstract. Esquivel's writing succeeds where the movie fails -- in execution of a style that, if not done right, can go terribly awry.
There were so many things to love beyond just the style. The story is action-packed and drama-filled. The Mexican revolution forms a nice historical backdrop and gives cultural context and significance to the novel. I loved the relationships between characters and the emotions that are evoked and described throughout the story, even if I did prefer John to Pedro. Mama Elena is a superb villain. And I really liked that the chapters were split up by month/dish.
Two things that weren't my favorite -- the in-depth description of each recipe and Pedro. I am not a cook and so more than a cursory description of how to make a dish doesn't exactly interest me and often confuses me (especially when I'm reading it in another language!). I did like the food premise and that each chapter was based on a different recipe. I even liked the fact that food had such a strong, emotional effect on those who consumed it. It only became a negative part of the book for me when the story would stop for a paragraph or two or even a page just to explain how exactly the dish was made. However, this is merely a personal preference and I'm sure that many, especially those who love to cook, will actually like this bit of the story. And finally, Pedro. Oh Pedro, how I loathe thee. I love a good romance. And I did like the romance in Como Agua Para Chocolate. But I did not like Pedro. He is selfish, rude, controlling, and at times violent. None of the qualities I look for in a guy. But hey, to each his own. I just felt like he was a rather unlikable character. *SPOILER ALERT* One scene in which he locks Tita in a dark room and practically rapes her seems like such a casual part of the story, which was rather shocking to me. I suppose I can appreciate that in the end she followed her true feelings of passion and love but I just can't understand why she had them for Pedro. *END SPOILER*
Two things that weren't my favorite -- the in-depth description of each recipe and Pedro. I am not a cook and so more than a cursory description of how to make a dish doesn't exactly interest me and often confuses me (especially when I'm reading it in another language!). I did like the food premise and that each chapter was based on a different recipe. I even liked the fact that food had such a strong, emotional effect on those who consumed it. It only became a negative part of the book for me when the story would stop for a paragraph or two or even a page just to explain how exactly the dish was made. However, this is merely a personal preference and I'm sure that many, especially those who love to cook, will actually like this bit of the story. And finally, Pedro. Oh Pedro, how I loathe thee. I love a good romance. And I did like the romance in Como Agua Para Chocolate. But I did not like Pedro. He is selfish, rude, controlling, and at times violent. None of the qualities I look for in a guy. But hey, to each his own. I just felt like he was a rather unlikable character. *SPOILER ALERT* One scene in which he locks Tita in a dark room and practically rapes her seems like such a casual part of the story, which was rather shocking to me. I suppose I can appreciate that in the end she followed her true feelings of passion and love but I just can't understand why she had them for Pedro. *END SPOILER*
In conclusion, I highly suggest this novel. And I do believe that it is somehow even more magical when read in Spanish.
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"Ella conocía, pues lo había sentido en carne propia, lo poderoso que puede ser el fuego de una mirada" (59).
"She knew, since she had felt it in her own flesh, how powerful the fire of a look can be" (59)
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COMING SOON: A review of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.
Good article. Does this book have an English version?
ReplyDeleteYep. It's called Like Water For Chocolate.
ReplyDelete