Bookmarks: A Companion Text for Like Water for Chocolate

By Janet Marie Giannotti

Book Overview

A Companion Text forLike Water for Chocolate provides exercises and activities for ESL students who are reading the English translation of the novel by Laura Esquivel (published by Doubleday). Set during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Like Water for Chocolate is a story about an extended Mexican family and what happens when one daughter is not permitted to marry the man she loves. Cooking and food are central to the story line and help thread the story together.
A Companion TextforLike Water for Chocolate is made up of six units, each covering two chapters in the novel. Every unit contains a preview section, free writing exercises, a short glossary (to help with Spanish words), comprehension quizzes, vocabulary exercises and summarizing exercises, a section devoted to response journals, and topics for discussion. The "Beyond the Novel" section includes facts about U.S. and Mexican history and folk tales. Illustrations throughout the book help to engage students and offer visual support for reading comprehension.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0472085964
• ISBN13: 9780472085965
• Release Date: December 1999
• Publisher: University of Michigan Press ELT
• Length: 152 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.0" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

Excellent Series

Novels for ESL students can sometimes be overwhelming not only because of the language, but also because of the sometimes lack of cultural context. That's why having a "Bookmarks" type of supplement can really bring a novel alive and stimulate interest in something that might otherwise have passed with barely a second thought other than "I had to do it." I especially like that the books are written with the multimodal learner in mind. I highly recommend this series if you are teaching any of these novels.

Attractive Men

After reading the book Like Water for Chocolate, I don't that the men in Esquivel's novle are weak, even unappealing characters. Esquivel doesn't bash men unfairly. In contrast, she describes men exactly depending on their jobs or their characters. In this novel, we can see two attractive men: John and Juan. The first attractive man is Dr.John

Good classroom guide

This guide is very helpful for students in my basic writing class in community college, many of whom have never read a novel.

bad traditions

Like Water for Chocolate is a story about recipes, advice, home remedies and romance. The novel is the story of Tita, the youngest of three doughters born to Mama Elena, the tyrannical owner of De La Garza Ranch.Tita is the victim of tradition. As the youngest doughter in a traditional Mexican family she is obliged to remain unmarried and care for her mother.experiencing pain and frustration as she watches Pedro, her true love, marry her older sister Rosaura. Tita faces the added burden of having to bake the wedding cake.Because of her skill as a cook and knowledge of its magic. She puts emøtion in the cake and makes all the wedding guests ill.The story ends in a magical, unusual way. It is enjoyable reading.