"Like Water For Chocolate" {by Laura Esquivel} Book Club Ideas

I think all of us want to thank Libby for being the epitome of a great moderator on this months book, "Like Water for Chocolate." Several of us liked the book but after Libby enlightened our minds to the many layers this book was hiding beneath its pages many of us left book club loving this book! Thank you Libby for making this book come to life for us!

(P.S. Don't forget to do a blog post on here with some of your notes, they were fantastic!)

Like Water for Chocolate...Did you know?

Check out this interesting little tid bit of information I found about the title of this months book:

The phrase "like water for chocolate" comes from the Spanish 'como agua para chocolate.' This phrase is a common expression in some Spanish-speaking countries and was the inspiration for Laura Esquivel's novel title (the name has a double meaning).

In some Latin American countries, such as Mexico, hot chocolate is made not with milk, but with water instead. Chocolate will only melt to create hot chocolate when the water reaches boiling point. The saying 'like water for chocolate' alludes to this fact. It can be used as a metaphor for describing a state of passion or – sometimes – excitement. It may also be used to refer to anger, such as being 'boiling mad'. Tita, the main character, actually uses the expression in the book when she says 'estoy como agua para chocolate' (I am like water for chocolate) meaning that she is boiling mad.

The Title could also mean that Tita is becoming bitter because chocolate is sweet and water has no taste, so it is literally like water for chocolate. Instead of something sweet she substitutes water for it.