Como agua para chocolate

Each chapter of this novel opens with a recipe, and each recipe leads to a family story. Tita, the youngest daughter of the De la Garza ranch in northern Mexico, is forbidden by her mother from marrying Pedro, who instead marries Tita's sister Rosaura. Tita pours her grief and desire into the kitchen, and the dishes she prepares make people weep, lust or fall ill. Laura Esquivel sets this against the Mexican Revolution and a long wait for a reunion.

Magical realism, domestic drama and food writing all turn up here. It is brisk, funny and a little scandalous.

Inward-looking and thought-provoking; an easy read.

Best for readers like The Empathetic Explorer. Which reader are you?