Mendoza is a Colombian writer, and I suddenly realized I haven’t read a Colombian novel since grad school. After finishing the novel, I googled it and discovered that Buddha Blues has been savaged by critics. I loved it, though. It’s completely all over the place, and if you remember to bring your sense of humor to the reading, you might enjoy it.
I’m glad to see that Colombian literature has recovered from the depredations of the horrible magical realism. There is nothing magical about Buddha Blues. It’s Zygmunt Bauman all the way.
Clarissa's Blog 
I was totally in love with magical realism when I first encountered it, but the more I read, the more derivative and repetitive it all seemed. Now I can’t imagine buying a book if I picked it up in a bookstore and found the words “magical realism” on the little blurb on the back.
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Same here. The first couple of times are amazing but then it just gets so vapid. I’m glad this trend is over in Latin America,at least.
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