Saturday, January 14, 2017

Like Water for Chocolate

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Park cookbook, part magical realism, part dramatic love story.

First thoughts: This was an easy and fast read. I enjoyed the story itself and most of the folktale aspects. (In general I do like magic and magical realism, but I still need it to "make sense" or have purpose.)

The food: I don't think I'll be making any of the recipes listed any time soon. They're all pretty labor intensive or meant for large crowds. Still, I did like reading the recipe descriptions and imagining the work put into elaborate meals.

The love story: I wasn't convinced by Pedro & Tita's love. There wasn't enough backstory or description of what exactly they found attractive in each other besides "love at first sight" - I wanted to know what they have in common, what they talk about, what they fight about, and what their love was really based on.

Recommended for: anyone with an interest in book translations or the magical realism of Mexico. Not anyone looking for a book about the intricacies of relationships.

Final thoughts: I guess in the end, my issue isn't with the magical realism, it's with the love story.


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