Library / Emotional Suppression
Read this when
Like Water for Chocolate
She wasn't allowed to marry, so she cried into the wedding cake and made every guest sob. Petty? Maybe. Iconic? Absolutely. 🎂
Who it's for
Tita is forbidden to marry because the family tradition says the youngest daughter must care for her mother, and she can only express her grief, love and rage through the food she cooks, which then makes everyone feel what she feels.
Feelings it meets
What it is
Laura Esquivel's 1989 novel, translated into English by Carol and Thomas Christensen, is set on a ranch in Piedras Negras, Mexico, and told in monthly installments with recipes, romances and home remedies. Family tradition says Tita, the youngest daughter, must care for her domineering mother, Mama Elena, instead of marrying, so Pedro, the man Tita loves, marries her sister Rosaura.
Where to find it
In print; available from libraries (Libby/Hoopla) and as an audiobook. Not public domain. A 1992 film adaptation exists.
Before you start
Heads up: A rape and a baby's death.
Age: Ages 16+
I sometimes hold it half a sin To put in words the grief I feel;Alfred, Lord Tennyson, In Memoriam A. H. H., Canto 5
