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truepennyA conversation on someone else's LJ reminded me of a long-standing curiosity. And now that, hey, I have people around who are extraordinarily well-read, I thought I'd pose the question.
Books about boarding schools that get it right.
There's a long post I made back in December about a number of reasons why Diana Wynne Jones's Witch Week is a better res (Latin for "thing"--I can't think of a word for what I want) than the Harry Potter books. One of those reasons is that Rowling's vision of what boarding school is like doesn't ring true, even to an American reader such as myself. But, when I grumble, Someone ought to write a book that does this properly, I can't put my money where my mouth is, because I don't actually know what I'm talking about. I can just tell a dreamy delusion when I see one. So I'm interested in finding books that achieve a more accurate representation.
Obviously, if the book is sf/f/h, that's a big bonus, but for the purposes of this book-quest, it's the boarding-school-ness I'm looking for. All suggestions welcome and appreciated!
Books about boarding schools that get it right.
There's a long post I made back in December about a number of reasons why Diana Wynne Jones's Witch Week is a better res (Latin for "thing"--I can't think of a word for what I want) than the Harry Potter books. One of those reasons is that Rowling's vision of what boarding school is like doesn't ring true, even to an American reader such as myself. But, when I grumble, Someone ought to write a book that does this properly, I can't put my money where my mouth is, because I don't actually know what I'm talking about. I can just tell a dreamy delusion when I see one. So I'm interested in finding books that achieve a more accurate representation.
Obviously, if the book is sf/f/h, that's a big bonus, but for the purposes of this book-quest, it's the boarding-school-ness I'm looking for. All suggestions welcome and appreciated!
Psmith
Date: 2003-03-12 07:22 pm (UTC)P.G. Wodehouse's Psmith series takes place in a boarding school or two. Silly fun, like all of Wodehouse, and rather too much cricket, but there *is* a certain undercurrent of ugliness.
Re: Psmith
Date: 2003-03-12 07:28 pm (UTC)At this rate, I'm going to need a small sturdy goblin to trot around after me just to carry around my booklist.