The Magicians, by Lev Grossman
Quentin Coldwater is ridiculously smart, not to mention introverted and unhappy. He’s bound for a top-tier college when he shows up and his interviewer is dead. After chasing a note from a paramedic into an overgrown alley and into the entrance exam of Brakebills College of Magical Pedagogy, he begins his education in real-world magic. Because in The Magicians, you don’t cast a spell by vaguely waving your hands, any more than a beginning programmer would write an air-traffic-control program. This is real magic, and it’s hard and brutal like any other subject. He manages to survive four years of intense study at Brakebills, but everything is thrown off-kilter when he and his friends discover the secret of interdimensional travel. The Magicians, by Lev Grossman, remains one of my favorite books, even after five years. I would say it’s something about the sheer realism of the series that makes it different from something like Harry Potter - the world of magic is much more realistic, as far as that word can be applied to magic. One gets the feeling that if magic were real, this is exactly how it would play out. The other thing that makes The Magicians really stand out is how it manages to be both a fantasy book and a commentary on fantasy books. The characters make occasional references to Narnia and Harry Potter, which further adds to the feeling of realism.
Reviewed by Adrian G., grade 12
Grandview Library
Comments
I actually really enjoyed this novel. I went into it thinking that it would be similar to Harry Potter or something, but it was actually pretty different. First of all, the characters are all young adults in college, and second, there's no real clear villain in the first part of the book. Some of the story is based around Quentin's feelings of being discontent with his life, which was interesting. It doesn't really have the "homeliness/comfortable atmosphere" that the Harry Potter stories (especially the early ones) have, but it was still great. The story is gripping, following Quentin through his indoctrination into and his graduation of college and his feelings of slipping back into dissatisfaction with his life. When action finally happens, it is written extremely well. The characters are not likable, but interesting. I really enjoyed reading this novel and I would recommend it to others who want a more serious magical novel.
Reviewed by NK, Grade 10
Montrose Library