Rosehips

Rosehips remind Graciela of her great-grandmother and introduce the magical realism of the novel. Graciela remembers her great-grandmother constantly eating rosehips and enjoying the beauty of the flowers at her house. When Graciela stops at the rosebush upon returning from the hospital, she gets closer and looks for the comfort of her great-grandmother who would have known what to do.

Red lipstick

Red lipstick is a panacea for any problem that Graciela and the women in her family find themselves in. Her mother and aunt always repeated the phrase: “Whatever the question, red lipstick is the answer”. When Graciela first fears the loss of her gift, she runs to the drugstore to get a fresh tube of red lipstick.

Snow Queen

Graciela’s dreams of the Snow Queen, La Reina de las Nieves, represents the fear that she will not be able to recuperate her gift...