free traders beowulf discussion

We've been comparing The Magicians to The Secret History in the chat, and it's got me thinking. The character types aren't the only similarity between the two stories -- there's also the setting! Part of what drew me into both is the absolute love the main characters have for the school around them, leading to beautiful, fond descriptions of the grounds and of student activities.

Do you know of any novels you think are similar, or just ones that you love? I've heard that when they focus on university faculty, this sort of book is called a campus novel, while varsity novels centre on the students.

On of my favourite discoveries of last year was Pamela Dean's Tam Lin, which re-sets the old Scottish ballad of the same name at a Midwestern college called Blackstock. (Like The Secret History, the MC falls in with a bunch of affected weirdo classicists. It's a more upbeat read than TSH, though.) The book is full of leisurely descriptions of student life and packed with literary references, and the fantasy elements from the ballad form a strange undercurrent to the surface plot, erupting incomprehensibly into the characters' lives in ways they are slow to understand.

I read the book after reading the ballad, which I enjoyed because it let me see how Dean was adapting her source material, but some readers go in blind and still enjoy it. (I was also spoiled for a major plot point by this review from The Toast, but I don't think it detracted from my enjoyment.)

well maybe not about university but in reference to books with groups of educated people and do things together just like FTB or in the secret history, there are the books "2666" and "Hopscotch".

Has anyone read Mr Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore? It's not technically a campus novel (although there are a couple grad student characters and, being vague to avoid spoilers, the settings are VERY campus-like), but it is BRILLIANT. Like Miguel's suggestion, it's about educated people who do stuff together and the cast of characters definitely gives me Magicians vibes.

It's also chock full of nerdy references and features another fictional series that the main character loves almost as much as Q loves Fillory.

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss also takes place in a university for magic, it's really different from The Magicians but just as mindblowingly amazing. Another awesome book about a magic school is The Magicians' Guild by Trudi Canavan. I highly recommend both of these!

I think i will read all of them, well exept for The Name of the Wind ....beacuse i already read it like 5 times, its amaizing, but thats not the point, now i am reading the secret history and then Mr Penumbra beacuse is really short.