Adulthood, Brutally (or, the Brakebillsroman)

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“Magic, Quentin discovered, wasn’t romantic at all. It was grim and repetitive and deceptive. And he worked his ass off and became very good at it.” — Lev Grossman, The Magicians

Every aspect of Lev Grossman’s 2009 fantasy novel The Magicians is a brushstroke in a painting depicting the horrors of growing up and facing the realizations of adulthood. Many of these strokes are intentional, as I’ll discuss and which you’ll see in the quotes I’ve included throughout this piece.

A few instead arise from the act of reading and engaging with the novel. Any pitch which accurately portrays The Magicians as a fascinating and adult blending of Harry Potter, Narnia and The Secret History will leave a bitter taste in your mouth when you learn just how unpleasant the narration can be at times. (Point-of-view character Quentin Coldwater is a little toxic and insular to begin with, growing into a real asshole over the course of the book until an abrupt and arguably unearned change of heart at the eleventh hour.) Of course it’s impossible for this book — or any — to be perfect. Welcome to adulthood.

“Sometimes I wonder if man was really meant to discover magic … If there’s a…