A love letter to Fantasy

THE MAGICIANS LAND

I really have come to love this series. Those 3 installments are actually one book. On the surface this whole trilogy is one big love letter to Fantasy. But when you've gotten used to the wacky world building and all the witty allusions, you might notice that Lev Grossman has managed to make you fall in love with a lot initially unlikeable people.

Apart from the stuff that very obviously resembles Narnia, there are numerous allusions and references to everything from Terry Pratchett's discworld series to the book of Revelation. So if you are an avid fantasy reader you will be able to enjoy this series on a whole other level than muggles or mundanes without years of fantasy experience.

That being said, Lev Grossman's writing style is so marvelously descriptive that the magical Fillory and the mysterious Neitherlands feel just as real as our real world Brooklyn does. The magic system comes across as very complex and mathematical, but also as something that can be mastered through very hard work. The elaborate description of the workings of the spells makes practising magic almost something tangible.

I guess the best thing about reading all 3 installments is that when you strip away all the whimsy, you'll find that our anti heroes all experience a considerable amount of personal growth. In Quentin's case it even seems to have a direct effect on his spellcasting abilities. He seems to strenghten every time he overcomes adversity. In a sense this is a coming of age story of sorts. The journey from insecure teen into responsible adult magician.