Who is the narrator, can she or he read minds, and, more importantly, can we trust her or him?
The narrator is the grandniece of Tita De la Garza, whom the story revolves around. The novel starts in the first person point of view, in a conversational-like manner:
To keep from crying when you chop [an onion] (which is so annoying.) I suggest you place a little bit on your head. (1, 1)
Turns out the narrator gets this sensitivity to onions from her great-aunt, and the novel switches from first person to third person to tell Tita's saga. It's a close third person, though, so we feel like an invited guest to the story:
Tita had no use for the usual slap on the bottom, because she was already crying when she emerged; maybe that was because she knew then that it would be her lot in life to be denied marriage. (1, 2)
You might be wondering, as we were, why the grand-niece tells the story of Tita and not…well, Tita. Perhaps it's to show the importance of passing down stories (and recipes) so as not to repeat history. Or, maybe to add a tall-tale feeling to the novel, which is already heavily influenced by magic and fantasy. Read on for more on that…