What is Magical Realism?

It’s recently come to my attention that the genre I’d been referring to as magical realism is not, in fact, actually magical realism. So I did some more digging and the results aren’t as clear-cut as I supposed. I mean, no one argues about what constitutes a murder mystery, but apparently what makes it “real” magical realism is a hot button issue within the literary community.

Magical realism, according to Writing-World.com and Wikipedia (as well as the Encyclopedia Britannica and Princeton University, among others), is a much narrower genre that one might suppose, mostly referring to the South American writers who incorporate magical or fantastical elements into otherwise realistic fiction. (Think Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Alejo Carpentier, and Jorge Luis Borges.) There’s many theories on why this style is characterized by Latin American writers, including postulations about post-colonial theory and reconciling alternate histories, but that is really beyond the scope of this post.

A recent article in Writer’s Digest delves into magical realism a little further, coining the origins of magical realism in Latin America, but saying “while magical realism may (or may not) have been birthed in Latin America, is has evolved and migrated.” And that really seems to be the crux of this debate: not what constitutes magical realism, but who is allowed to write it.

The purists, on one end, say that the Latin American authors write this genre in the pure form, while others say it’s about the characteristicsof the story and instead of about geography. (Side note: Amazon apparently sides with the purists, since several books I selected as my favorite books in the magical realism genre are classified as sci-fi/ fantasy.)

The key item that identifies magical realism is that things just are; they are not explained, they simply exist. (Think The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.) Another key feature is that the story takes place in the real world but that has magical things happen that aren’t explained. (e.g. Of course the cat is talking, why wouldn’t the cat being talking? Kind of scenarios.) So I would still like to know, are these novels that I love considered magical realism or are they sci-fi/ fantasy?

My impulse is to say yes. Because although the art of play writing originated with the Greeks, we don’t go around saying that only Greek people can write plays. Although Thomas Mallory wrote what is considered the first novel in English with The Morte d’ Arthur, we don’t say only English people can write novels. The same with various poetic forms—the sestina, the ghazal, the haiku. So, at least in my mind, as long as you follow the proscriptions of the genre, it doesn’t matter where you hail from. Besides, magical realism is a kickass name for a genre and everybody should have access to that.

It seems that I’ve gone on long enough with this that rather than launch into a book review, I’d like to leave you with a list of my recommendations for further reading in the genre. Apologies right now to the Latin American authors: I’ve never been able to make it through any of those novels.

Recommended Books:

• The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaimon
• Lexicon by Max Barry
• The Magicians Series by Lev Grossman
• The Time-Traveler’s Wife by Audry Niffenegger
• Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman (this one is debatable, but thought I’d include it anyway)
• Eleanor by Jason Gurley

Resources for Further Reading:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_realism
• http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Magic_realism.html
• http://www.writing-world.com/sf/realism.shtml
• http://postcolonialstudies.emory.edu/magical-realism/

And in a side note, check out this latest release from Kristina Wright! http://www.amazon.com/Best-Erotic-Romance-Kristina-Wright/dp/1627781137 So excited to be included in the lineup with some superstar writers in the genre. Keep writing, ladies!

Jason Gurley on Manic Monday Book Review

Some of you might be wondering why an erotica blog is reviewing a sci-fi author who deals primarily with space exploration and post-apocalyptic scenarios.

Explanation: If a badly written book can turn you off, then a beautifully written book can make the synapses running along your neural pathways sing and arch their little synapse-y backs in delight. And the author turning me on today is Jason Gurley. Although he’s in no way related to the “active romance” genre, good writing demands to be recognized, and Gurley’s writing is precise, lyrical, and filled with those strange, almost surreal situations that delight me as a reader on an almost cellular level.

While Gurley is primarily known for cover design, his books seem to be gaining traction. His latest release, Eleanor, is even available in hard copy at Powell Books in Oregon.

The Offspring and I read grownup books quite often, and today we finished Deep Breath Hold Tight. So far we’ve made our way through The Last Rail-Rider short story and The Settlers (Movement #1), though I read Eleanor on my own. It was killer to read The Settlers (Movement #1) out loud every night, painstakingly making our way through it, since I wanted to gobble it all down greedily. But the richness of language is so wonderful in this, and all of Gurley’s books, that I’m very glad we’re taking the time to read it all through slowly. Reading out loud has given me even greater appreciation for Gurley’s storytelling ability. He never over-explains, always has his characters act in realistic ways, has people talk to one another the way that people actually would. (You would not believe the number of books where this is not the case.) I’m not a sci-fi fan, but his characters are so well-crafted, the language so wonderful, the pacing just right, that it creates the mysterious alchemy of all: compelling a reader to read on.

There’s just so much richness here, so much depth and complexity of character, skilled use of language, just so much to admire. Hearing Gurley interviewed on the Self-Publishing Podcast, he said he has an image of a giraffe hiding in every cover that he designs. It might not be discernible to the naked eye, but it’s there, somewhere, in the background. I feel this way when reading his books as well, that there’s this wonderful polish and overlay to the whole thing, more going on than meets the eye, making the work standout and shine.

This is one of those authors that no matter what your genre kink may be, he’s more than worth the read. While there’s no such thing as an author for everybody, he’s definitely an author for who’s earned my fan-dom.