I have just finished reading The Two Lives of Lydia Bird (2020) by Josie Silver, which prompted me to think about magical realism as a genre and revisit other books I have read in the genre. I found this book after reading and enjoying One Day in December (2018), which is not magical realism. I did not know this was magical realism until I started reading. Magical realism is not a genre I seek, but always like.
While I could describe what magical realism is well enough for you to understand, I found a satisfying definition and a discussion of the types of magical realism in this article in O Magazine from 2019. I particularly like this description offered by Ramona Ausubel, an award winning author:
"In other words, magical realism can be defined as stories rooted in reality—with a touch of, well, magic. They are fictional tales probable enough that they could actually happen, with a bit of whimsy.."
The first I read was Beloved by Toni Morrison as a junior in college. Sethe, the main character, escaped from slavery 18 years before, but has not escaped the horrors of that life. She is haunted by the ghost of her unnamed daughter and also by the memories of her past. The novel's realistic elements are a window to the experiences of someone formerly enslaved, while the magical elements ask the reader to accept that we cannot know or understand all the mental, emotional, and physical repercussions for someone who has suffered and lived on as Sethe has. The book is both painful and beautiful.
Another from college is The Metamorphosis (1915), a novella by Franz Kafka in which Gregor Samsa wakes one morning to find he has turned into an insect. There is no explanation for why or how this has happened. Samsa goes about his business to find there are professional and personal repercussions to his transformation.
I also seem to remember having read The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende, but cannot remember much of the story. (This will need to go on a list of novels to re-read.) The book appeared on all the lists of magical realism I looked at to jog my memory of what I have read.
Joanne Harris is an author who seems to specialize in magical realism as seen in Chocolat (2000), which is also an excellent movie, The Girl with No Shadow (US title) (2009), Peaches for Monsieur le Curé (2013), and The Strawberry Thief (2019). I have read the first two, while the other two are on my extensive TBR list. The stories take place in a small French village, Lansquenet-sous-Tannes and Paris and feature Vianne Rocher a chocolate maker with a talent for guessing every patron's favorite.
I have read three novels in which the emotions of cooking are a significant element. In Like Water for Chocolate (1989), by Laura Esquivel, the emotions Tita is feeling as she cooks a dish are then transferred to those who eat the dish. The opposite is the case for Rose in The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake (2011), by Aimee Bender, who can taste the feelings of the cook. This is also true of Lumi in A Taste of Sage (2020), a romance by Yaffa S. Santos.
A.S. King is that rare case of author who I seek out because of the magical elements. I have read, in the order I read them:
- Ask the Passengers (2012) - Astrid sends thoughts and questions up to passing airplanes, in which a passenger hears and is prompted to their own introspection.
- Reality Boy (2013) - This one is not magical realism, but an excellent book.
- Please Ignore Vera Dietz (2010) - This one is also just regular realism, but also highly recommended.
- Glory O'Brien's History of the Future (2014) - Over night Glory gains the power to see a person's past and future in a glance.
- Dig (2019) - This one is my favorite. The story is told from the point of view of 5 teens and follows a twisty path all connected to the Hemmings family potato farm. This one is difficult to sum up in a few sentences. It is well worth keeping up with the twists and turns.
- The Year we Fell From Space (2019) - This is a middle grade novel while the others are YA. (I was never prevented from reading any book I chose, and have adopted this philosophy as well, so if you want to know the age range for any book for young people there are resources like Common Sense Media to help guide you.)
And as I mentioned here, I recently acquired a copy of Still Life With Tornado (2016) that I am looking forward to reading soon.
Other titles I have read and remember reading are:
- Belzhar (2014) - Meg Wolitzer - At a therapeutic boarding school, journal writing takes students to the alternate world of Belzhar.
- In Five Years (2020) - Rebecca Serle - One night Dannie skips ahead five years to a life she is not expecting, then wakes back in her time with mysteries she spends the next five years figuring out.
- Long Way Down (2019) - Jason Reynolds - As Will takes the elevator down toward a life changing act he is visited by ghosts of friends and family who help him to see what might come of his decision. This really does not do this novel in verse justice. I highly recommend just reading this one to feel the full power of the story.
- Paris on Repeat (2020) - Amy Bearce - This is a Groundhog Day story in which Eve relives the same day of her 8th grade trip to Paris until she is able to fix some mistakes and take some risks to make the day "perfect."
- Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937) - Zora Neale Hurston - Hurston is one of the authors from the past I would most like to meet. When I was looking at lists of magical realism novels, this one was a surprise, especially since I used to teach it and read it numerous times in the 15 years I was an English teacher. But in thinking about it, I realized the influence of nature on Janie brings in magical elements.
While I don't care for the click-baity nature of this title, "11 questions you're too embarrassed to ask about magical realism," the content is well research and informative about the origins and progression of magical realism as a separate genre.
What are your favorite works of magical realism?