What is it?
The concept of Magical Realism was first introduced as an art form by a German art critic named Franz Roh. In essence, it was an individualized way to represent and respond to reality. Now, it's not so much a genre as a literary motif which bases itself upon the paradoxical union of opposite concepts. For example, this literary form typically compares the concepts between life and death, or the modern day worldviews clashing with pre-colonial conceptions. The best current example of magical realism would be literature which displays itself within the confines of our reality and rationalities, while at the same time accepting and introducing supernatural concepts and beings into the text as well.