Again, Truepenny asks for book recommendations

[truepenny]

A 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!

Comments

[vass]

You probably already know about it, but Roald Dahl's first volume of autobiography, "Boy," is all about boarding school.

I'll also recommend Stephen Fry's quite obscene play on the subject. I can't remember the title, but it's published in the back of his book of essays, "Paperweight," and they're worth reading too. I wouldn't say the play's *realistic*, precisely, but it's almost certainly not a dreamy delusion, and he did go to boarding school. His memoir, "Moab is my Washpot," deals with his school career too, and it's far from dreamy and idealistic (he wasn't the most honest or law-abiding of students.)

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

I've read Moab is my Washpot, but did not know about Paperweight. Thanks!

Stephen Fry's play

[yonmei.livejournal.com]

...is called _Tobacco and Boys_. I read it in _Paperweight_, and saw it performed last year at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which is the kind of place where you see that kind of play. It was fun, but lightweight.