I’m doing the 52 book challenge and one of the prompts is magical realism, a genre that I’ve read very little of and disliked every one.
I know Gabriel Garcia Marquez is well known for MR. I read Love in the Time of Cholera and hated it, so I think that means One Hundred Years of Solitude is probably out for me.
I really enjoy literary fiction, and I know MR in the traditional sense is considered a subset of literary fiction so I think I need to go for something very traditional.
What would be your go-to for MR that is also dark, mysterious, thought-provoking and not twee or silly.
by frankchester
19 Comments
off the bat, I disagree complete that magical realism is twee (I mean, *100 Years of solitude* has a lot of violence and massacres) and kinda weird to assume it is when you haven’t read much of it
but if you want more bleak stuff, Carmen Machado’s “Her Body and Other Parties” or “Our Share of Night” from Mariana Enríquez have magical realism elements and could fit the bill
The Wisteria Society for Lady Scoundrels is, as described by the author, an “historical fantasy romantic comedy” set in Victorian England where lady pirates use the text from an scroll to fly around in their houses. The magic system is very simple and not absolutely vital to the plot. It’s super fun and there are two sequels that are just as delightful.
What did you dislike about it? Maybe that can help point you in some other directions 🙂
If you decide to go for Marquez, I would recommend Chronicle of a Death Foretold. The magical realism mostly comes out in the warped timeline and in premonitions, so it’s less obvious.
Try a book by Louis de Bernieres, whose books are easier to read but are beautifully written. If you are looking for something dark, his book Senior Viva and the Coca Lord, about the wars against cocaine cartels. I think it has the best use of MR in support of the plot. Others in the series (but can be read separately) are The War of Don Emanuel’s Nether parts and The Troublesome Offspring of Cardinal Guzman.
Maybe Italo Calvino? Baron in the trees is a fun book and his style is very fun to read imo
Maybe The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak?
The Pisces by Melissa Broder
I personally don’t think these are twee, but who knows what you will think of them if you hated OHOS/think it sounds twee.
Nothing to See Here (I actually think it is great satire/social commentary, funny, but not silly or twee.)
Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins (Jitterbug Perfume is my favorite by him/one of my favorite books of all time but maybe not serious enough for you.) Honestly the “summary” of these books by the publisher are the worst parts of these books and do not describe them well at all!! The summaries are totally twee 🤦🏻♀️.
Shit Cassandra Saw: short story collection about feminism/how women are treated in today’s society through the lens of the Greek Myth of Cassandra of Troy.
*Beloved* by Toni Morrison
*The Bone People* by Keri Hume
I enjoy some magical realism books a lot, but they’re the exception rather than the rule – I find that there’s been a trend in recent years for magical realism books that are very cutesy and twee so I understand what you’re trying to avoid.
I’d suggest looking at Isabel Allende (not all of her books are magical realism, but several are), Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo (leans heavily to the “realism” side of magical realism), or Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger (people disagree about whether this is magical realism – some say it is, some say it’s not. I’d say it’s sort of modern gothic with elements of magical realism).
Labyrinths by Jorge Luis Borges is an anthology with a more philosophical bent. He plays with interesting ideas.
My suggestion is The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill. Definitely not twee or silly. Plus it’s only 118 pages so if you hate it at least it was short 😂.
Personally I view that as such a character flaw that I can’t help but wish you ill.
Piranesi by Susana Clark. A Short stay in Hell by Stephen Peck.
Talking Man by Terry Bisson.
The Hum and the Shiver by Alex Bledsoe.
I’d possibly suggest the books of Robin Sloan…
Mr Penumbras 24 hour book store
Ajax Penumbra 1969
Sourdough
The bookcase clone
Moonbound
Rack of the stories are stand alone, it together it’s also all connected…
They all basically take place in San Francisco, it there is such a sense of magic to them… and San Francisco really stands out as a magical place… it’s hard to describe… I honestly can’t get enough of this series….
I think I understand your dislike for magical realism, and I share it. García Márquez’ prose really gets on my nerves.
However, I really liked Midnight’s Children, by Salman Rushdie, so this is my suggestion for you. It’s magical realism but it made sense to me, unlike García Márquez and all his “and then he house felt that the guerrillero was its dead cat, and the old dead lady ate the red eyes of the palm tree”.
Borges would be great becaus his stories are so short that if you happen to hate them there’s not much lost, and you get to cross off some important lit along the way. Just pick up Labyrinths. I’d start with the story “The Circular Ruins”.
Joe Abercrombie’s books are great. Not into fantasy or magic myself but there is just a smidge in his works. Violence abounds though. Start with “The Blade Itself”