At one point in the novel, the narrator Celaya vents about the ignorance of Americans who expect all Mexicans to look. Women across the republic, rich or poor, plain or beautiful, ancient or young, in the times of my grandmother all owned rebozos-the ones of real Chinese silk sold for prices so precious one asked for them as dowry and took them to the grave as one’s burial shroud, as well as the cheap everyday variety made of cotton and bought at the market. In Sandra Cisneros's novel, Caramelo (NY: Vintage Contemporaries, 2003), the concept of Latina/o ethnic identity is shown to be far more complex than the 'Hispanic' or 'Non-Hispanic' dichotomy of United States census categories. As Lala explains, the rebozo was a garment that defined the culture of Mexico in her grandmother’s time: Soledad is born into a family of rebozo (shawl) makers whose artful creation process includes hand-dying and intricate hand-braiding of the shawls’ fringe. Ive been eating honey sweets because I have a sore throat. sweet (United Kingdom) He estado comiendo caramelos de miel porque me duele la garganta. candy (United States) ¡Las tiendas venden muchos caramelos en HalloweenStores sell a lot of candy at Halloween b. When Lala begins to delve deeply into sensory detail, Soledad repeatedly cautions, “Careful! Just enough, but not too much” (92). Phrasebook caramelo ( kah - rah - meh - loh ) masculine noun 1. For example, when Lala opens her story with the phrase, “It was such a long, long time ago” (92), Soledad says, “It wasn’t that long ago!” (92). The voice of the Awful Grandmother makes frequent interruptions of Lala’s telling, dissatisfied by certain elements. Cisneros is the author of two novels The House on Mango Street and Caramelo a collection of short stories, Woman Hollering Creek two books of poetry. It begins with the coming-of-age story of the Awful Grandmother, Soledad Reyes. Caramelo book by Sandra Cisneros on all Collectibles Literature & Fiction Books > World Literature Books Dumping Debt Rated: G (General Audience) See Customer Reviews Select Format Hardcover 4.

Lala’s narration takes the reader back in time, not only before her own birth, but to the turn of the 20th century.