8littlebookshelves

  Ever heard of magic realism? Curious about what it is? Let me give you a short introduction and tell you about my favorite books within this genre. What is magic realism? This form of art - in its wider sense, meaning visual arts, literature, and so on - represents the fusion of actual reality (tangible, visible, rational) and magical reality (hallucinations, dreams). It is a "third reality," a synthesis of the familiar realities to us. The transition to surrealism, another category, is fluid. It is mainly a genre in literature and in paintings or at least more known as such. It evolved during the 1920s mainly in Europe and America. In the late 1940s it became a major literary movement in Latin America. Magic realism in literature is closely related to the 3 genres of social realism, fantasy and surrealism. Some see it as a subcategory of fantasy.    Famous authors   Well-known writers of magic realism include Isabel Allende, Jorge Luis Borges, Gabriel García Má...

    It's on Netflix now: The story of two young people caught up in the Second World War. And of course, it's instantly become super popular. BUT: you should read the book! And here's why ... (no spoilers!)   Movie vs. Book First of all, I don't really want to get into a comparison between the movie and the novel. This is not what this blog is about. So, if you do want to watch the movie, go right ahead - just do so after you read the book :-) For what reason? I've made the experience over the years that once I watch a film and then start the book, all I see before my mind's eye are the scenes from the screen: all the characters, the setting, all of it comes just straight from Hollywood. There is hardly any room left for one's own imagination.  The most striking example happened when I wanted to read The Lord of the Rings . This was a few years after I saw the blockbuster (and loved it). There was no way for me to get the screen pictures out of my head. Gand...

    Have you heard of the sensation this epic novel has sparked? Over millions and millions of copies sold worldwide this book offers a super unique story, full of meaning and power, and is absolutely well written. So, if you haven't read it yet, here's a brief introduction to why you should (no spoilers) ... The Story Wolf Totem follows Chen, a student from Beijing, to the vast grasslands on the Inner Mongolia steppes, where he joins herdsmen in their traditional life. He doesn't do so  voluntarily . Chen has been exiled by the Mao government. It is the start of a novel experience for the young man. He soon finds there is a tug of war between farmers and their "enemies", the wolves that occasionally attack their livestock. The herdsmen hunt the packs viciously in return. They also kill pubs they discover in a den.  Yet, Chen saves one pub and lovingly raises it as his own wolf totem . It is not an easy task. The wolf, seemingly adapting to its new life at first...