Magical Realism
New 3/09
The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Trueba family embodies strong feelings from the beginning of the 20th century through the assassination of Allende in 1973.
Necklace of Kisses by Francesca Lia Block
Forty-year-old Weetzie Bat ends her once-passionate relationship with secret agent Max and checks into an enchanted pink hotel, where she meets an otherworldly host of fawns, angels, and mermaids.
The Thin Place by Kathryn Davis
Discovering a dead body at a lake near the Canadian border,12-year-old Mees Kipp brings the man back to life and realizes that she possesses an extraordinary gift that irrevocably shapes the lives of Mees and her two friends.
The Onion Girl by Charles DeLint
A novel set in the mystical city of Newford tells the hidden story of Jilly Coppercorn, an artist whose magical paintings capture the hidden beings that live in the city's shadows and whose fey charm hides a dark secret about her past.
Perpetual Ending by Kristen De Hartog
Writing fables along with her illustrator/lover Simon, Jane finds comfort from tragic childhood memories involving her twin sister Eugenie, and weaves clues to her secret past within the tales she writes.
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
At the beginning of the 20th century, Tita, the youngest of three daughters, is expected to serve her mother for the rest of her life, but in order to show her love to Pedro, who is engaged to her sister, Tita cooks for him.
Sarah Canary by Karen Joy Fowler
In 1873, Chin Ah Kin finds Sarah Canary on the outskirts of his camp, and since she only speaks nonsense, he tries to take her to an asylum, but on the way she disappears and he becomes a victim of racism.
With by Donald Harington
After Robin Kerr is abducted from mainstream America, she slowly adapts to her new life in the backwoods of Madewell Mountain with the aid of the pets and the spirit that communicate with her.
The Town That Forgot to Breathe by Kenneth J. Harvey
When the maritime village of Bareneed is beset by mythic sea creatures, a bizarre suffocating plague, and other strange events, divorced father Joseph Blackwood works against time to save his only daughter.
Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman
The marriage of Arlyn Singer and John Moody, opposites who are drawn to each other despite a mutual lack of understanding, has a profound and lasting impact on them, their children and their grandchildren.
Candles Burning by Tabitha King
In the wake of her father's torture, murder and dismemberment, Calliope "Calley" Dakin and her mother flee to Pensacola Beach where a woman waits for Calley, who is no ordinary little girl.
Caramba! by Nina Marie Martinez
Working at a California cheese factory within sight of the Mexican border, Nat and Sway share confidences at a local club and pursue dreams of saving Sway's father's soul and overcoming a fear of public transportation.
Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran
Three Iranian sisters – Marjan, Layla and Bahar Aminpour – flee the turmoil of the Islamic Revolution in their native country to seek refuge in Ireland, where they open the exotic Babylon Cafe.
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove, an African-American girl in an America whose love for blonde, blue-eyed children can devastate all others, prays for her eyes to turn blue, so that she will be beautiful, people will notice her, and her world will be different.
The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
The collapse of a marriage is superimposed on an investigation of recovered war memories and a man's search for his own identity.
Mama Day by Gloria Naylor
In a small Georgia town, Mama Day uses her gifts as a seer and healer, but her powers are ultimately tested when her beloved niece's life hangs in the balance.
Wild Animus by Rich Shapero
Newly graduated from college, Sam Altman is gripped by an inexplicable urge to lose himself in the wilderness and teams up with an enigmatic young woman who seems bent on helping him realize his dreams.
Waiting for June by Joyce Sweeney
In the third trimester of her pregnancy, Florida high school senior Sophie tries to discover the identity of the father she has never known, while adamantly refusing to disclose the name of her own baby's father.