Allende’s father and stepfather were both diplomats, and her godfather, Salvador Allende, was the first socialist president of Chile. Pinochet’s coup, which ousted Salvador Allende, had a huge impact on her family. Magic realism, or magical realism, is a Latin American literary movement that subverts European realism and colonialism by incorporating supernatural beliefs and elements. Many authors outside of Latin America write genre-bending books with fantasy elements. Some authors classify these works as magical realism. Some refer to them as slipstream, fabulism, or surrealism instead. As Anne Mai Yee Jansen pointed out on Book Riot in 2021, what is considered magical or unreal in one culture or religion might be a central belief in another, so the label is often contested. The House of the Spirits fictionalizes and weaves together history, social class, feminism, and supernatural beliefs. Its many haunting images and symbols — such as ghosts, caged birds, mermaids, and Clara’s visions of the future — blur the line between fantasy and reality. If you also love magical realism, unforgettable imagery, multi-generational epics, feminism, or historical fiction, check out these books like The House of the Spirits below. The horror elements in The House of the Spirits are underrated. There are some horrifying scenes involving Rosa’s corpse, beginning with her autopsy on the kitchen table. This is one of the reasons the book has been challenged. Esteban Trueba is an abusive patriarch who is violently controlling towards his daughters. If you’d like to get more recommendations based on your favorite books, check out Tailored Book Recommendations (TBR), take a short survey on your reading tastes, and then subscribe to get personalized book recommendations from professional Bibliologists!
