We Love Lisa Kleypas discussion

Lisa Kleypas talked about ‘magical realism’ in one of her interviews about Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor. It's definition at Wikipedia is as follows:

Magic realism or magical realism is an aesthetic style or genre of fiction in which magical elements are blended into a realistic atmosphere in order to access a deeper understanding of reality. These magical elements are explained like normal occurrences that are presented in a straightforward manner which allows the "real" and the "fantastic" to be accepted in the same stream of thought. It is a literary and visual art genre; creative fields that exhibit less significant signs of magic realism include film and music.

I was so interested I made a bookshelf and reviewed my books (including TBR). These are what I added on that shelf.



I would be very interested in what others have shelved. Thanks.

P.S. Hope this is the right place to post.

Other magical realism books:


I didn't see ANY magical realism in Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor. I mean, they talk about magic but in the context of what's real and what's not and that definitely doesn't fit the definition above.

Maybe she means the rest of the series to fit the genre?

I wouldn't say that Life of Pi is magical realism. May seem from the description but it's not. :)

Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Laura Esquivel
Isabel Allende (some of her work)
Louis de Bernieres
you don't have to be South American- but it helps!

I see that Salman Rushdie is also on the listopia list and I can see how he would qualify although I've never managed to finish one of his books. Also maybe Umberto Eco (at least I finished The Name of the Rose!).

I very much enjoy this genre (especially compared to the dreary reality of existentialism). There is a listopia here: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/14...

I agree with you DG- I really don't think that LK was even close with Christmas Eve at Friday Harbour- I think it needs an element of the fantastical and she didn't get there.

Yes, I do think Kleypas 'blew a kiss toward' magical realism in Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor in the first toy store scene (an enchanted place for everyone) (view spoiler)[when Maggie gives Holly the shell and tells her she can talk into it and it may help her to speak when she’s ready. I loved that scene, especially when Holly does speak and Mark, who’s telling Maggie he doesn’t believe in encouraging a child’s flight-of-fancy, starts to tell her to not interrupt. Magic is all around us and we are often too busy or preoccupied to notice. Or maybe too full of denial for the sake of political correctness. (hide spoiler)] It brought a smile to my lips. There a lot of other subtle things. The majority of the book takes place on an island, evocative of an exotic locale. The smooth, warm taste of roasted coffee Mark has made from his own labors. Sam valiantly works the soil while tending his vineyards, with a Victorian house - often a time period for magical realism - in the background. And Alex desperately needs some sort of mystical intervention. The magic of the season (both Halloween and Christmas). The letter to Santa.

But most of all, we all know this is a HEA novella, so there is a sensual aura of exploration and driving force of destiny whenever Mark and Maggie interact. Yes, LK just gave a tiny nod to the genre, but it was well done and done so sweetly.

Thanks Mshj for the GR link to Favorite Magical Realism Novels! I looked for it yesterday and didn't find it. I guess I needed to type in the exact title. I did check off some more books, both read to TBR.

Mshj wrote: "Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Laura Esquivel
Isabel Allende (some of her work)
Louis de Bernieres
you don't have to be South American- but it helps!"

oh Mshj! what GREAT list!! Garcia Marquez is on my top ten favorite authors.His narrative skills are off the charts IMO.


is another favorite of mine!!

LisaKay wrote: "But most of all, we all know this is a HEA novella, so there is a sensual aura of exploration and driving force of destiny whenever Mark and Maggie interact. Yes, LK just gave a tiny nod to the genre, but it was well done and done so sweetly.

I would be inclined to say that that is more of a philosophical point than a reflection of the MR genre. MR is a wide church I agree but I think that maybe if in LK's book the magic had been real or some more off the wall things had happened she would have got closer. She was probably afraid of alienating her established readership- however as I didn't really like CEAFH I'm probably not the best to judge.

It's a wonderful genre to explore-very diverse-but with an element of layering of the real world and the unreal that is very enjoyable to an escapist reader like me. I found the list by the way by clicking on the explore tab and then using the submenu to get onto listopia- typing in "magic realism" then brought up the list.

Autumn- Love in the Time of Cholera is one of my top 5 books so it's pretty embarassing that I haven't read all of GGM's work. It's nice to find another fan.

Thanks Mshj. Personally, I loved CEAFH and have read it repeatedly. To each her own.

Lisa Kay wrote: "Thanks Mshj. Personally, I loved CEAFH and have read it repeatedly. To each her own."

I really enjoyed it, too. Sometimes we need a lighter, feel good read to fill the time, and this one was perfect. I anticipate the next books will be a tad deeper, Christmas Eve was a great way to kick off the series.

My cousin si going on a cruise in a week and has never read romance. I lent her to read along with ....I told her she couldn't go wrong with LK. I think she will really enjoy Christmas Eve and its will "break her in" for Sugar Daddy since it's a litte lighter in the smut area!

this discussion (especially the linked listopias) inspired me to pick up some more MR books and broaden my reading a bit.

Mshj wrote: "this discussion (especially the linked listopias) inspired me to pick up some more MR books and broaden my reading a bit."

I would like to do that too. I think I'll start with , so I reserved it at the library.

Lisa Kay wrote: "Mshj wrote: "this discussion (especially the linked listopias) inspired me to pick up some more MR books and broaden my reading a bit."

I would like to do that too. I think I'll start with [boo..."

I read this over the weekend- rough weekend for me clearing out my Dad's house and this was a great pleasure to break the time with. I think that it was in the magic realism genre although it didn't have the toughness of some of the real masters. Was it chick lit? I don't know- I don't usually like chick lit and I enjoyed this- if any thing it was more of a feelgood novel. I also found the setting in the Amercian South very interesting. Now it's not somewhere I've visited but on reading this book I had images coming through my mind of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (love that film), Steel Magnolias and Driving Miss Daisy. It could well be the matriachal nature of the book. Anyhow it was a lot of fun and I'd recommend it to anyone who'd like a "lift".

[book:Garden Spells|1158967]

Mshj, I finally just went ahead and purchased and incorporated it into one of my challenges for Spring. So, it is "on-deck".

I think writers from Latin America are sensational at writing books based around magical realism. I wonder if it is because of the sensuality inherent in the culture in which they live or is this a stereotype? My list of favorite MR books by Latino/Latina authors are as follows.

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Fiona wrote: "I think writers from Latin America are sensational at writing books based around magical realism. I wonder if it is because of the sensuality inherent in the culture in which they live or is this a..."

I would agree with that Fiona. I think it's more a part of their culture, and they are not afraid of it, whereas most Americans treat magic and folklore as not real or worthy, or even as paganistic (gosh, I hope that's a real word!). You just have to think of the Salem Witch Trials to think about what our history of anything inherently magically.

Reading and quite enjoying it. Love the apple tree with an attitude! LOL!

thats great Lisa!! Garden spells was my accidental introduction to romance! LOL im sure u`ve read the story somewhere around this forums. I loved that book!