Tuesday Tea: What's your favorite campus/school novel?
There's nothing like a fresh notebook...
Some people get excited about the possibilities of January because it’s the start of a new year. Maybe you love spring because there’s so much rebirth and renewal.
For me, it’s autumn that evokes the feeling of fresh starts and anticipation — the unmatched high of a fresh black-and-white marble COMPOSITION BOOK (college-ruled or graph paper, please), a favorite pen, and the delicious potential of a new syllabus. Plus, back to school means Spooky Season isn’t too far behind.
This is my list of 8 Novels Set in Private Schools That Will Make You Glad You're a Grownup, and I recommend all of them. And/but, this time of year, I love to re-read the quick-and-creepy Down a Dark Hall by Lois Duncan. It was originally published in 1974; I probably first read it around ‘76 or ‘77, when I was 8-ish years old, and it made a massive impact on me. The heroine plays the piano and suffers through distinctly unsettling supernatural experiences with her teacher and her instrument. I was very into playing the piano at that age, and phew, this book grabbed me and hasn’t let go… even now, decades later.
My adult picks are The Way Men Act by Elinor Lipman (a rom-com not set in a school, but in a college town where high school politics are still at play), Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth (the most luscious Gothic confection; hear me talk about it), and If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio (Shakespeare plays plus dark academia; hear me talk about it).
If Dark Academia calls out to you this time of year, don’t miss this guest post — 7 Dark Academia Novels — from the excellent book recommender
(author of the What To Read If newsletter).
The All Souls series by Deborah Harkness. Admittedly, it's mostly the first part of the first book and parts of the third, but still. The fifth book just came out and I've been waiting to read it so I can reread the first ones this fall. Ooooooo, I can't wait.
Also, The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. Another good one for academia, fall, and spooky season and absolutely brilliant on audio.
This is clearly my sign to finally read The Secret History! The two that come to mind for me are Rebecca Makkai's I Have Some Questions for You and RF Kuang's Babel.