Ten Places in Books Where I’d Love to Live

Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl invited us to share “ten places in books where I’d love to live.” This is a fun prompt! I decided to focus on fantasy books. It was surprisingly hard to choose! I didn’t want to choose a place like Westeros, where I would probably be killed in a war or burned up by a dragon. So these are books that have fairly safe, fun, fantasy lands. Links go to my review (if I’ve written one) or to Malaprop’s Bookstore.

BookWorld from The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde–Okay, this feels a bit like asking a genie for more wishes, but there’s no rule saying I can’t. In The Eyre Affair, people can enter books and characters can jump between novels. If I recall correctly, BookWorld is the nexus where they all meet and it’s the gateway to every book. With access to BookWorld, I could jump in and out of every book at will!

Daevabad from The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty–I wouldn’t want to live in Daevabad during the time this trilogy is taking place, but going there a few years after things have calmed down? What fun! Magical peoples and creatures all coming together in one city, where magic carpets are a real thing? Let’s go!

Marsyas Island from The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune–As if the cover and the title weren’t enough of a pull, the charming found family and the unquestioning acceptance of everyone is the icing on the cake.

The Enchanted Forest from Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede–The Enchanted Forest isn’t lacking in drama but the wizards really aren’t as bad as they think they are and Cimorene and company easily keep them in check. How awesome would it be to visit friendly witches and dragons and take a walk in 7-league boots? This may be the perfect fantasy land for me.

Narnia from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis–I honestly expect to see Narnia on every list today because I’m that excited at the thought of going there. I don’t mean the Narnia where everything has gone wrong under the White Witch, but the Narnia where either the Pevensies or Caspian are the rulers. Having tea with Mr. Tumnus, hunting the White Stag, watching the monopods bounce about, and one day seeing what’s beyond the end of the world with Reepicheep would be a childhood dream fulfilled.

Newford from Dreams Underfoot by Charles de Lint–de Lint’s Newford books were my favorites as a teen. In many ways, Newford is just another large city. But the difference is that magic lurks around every corner if you only look for it. The community of characters and they ways they care for each other set these books apart for me, so watching Jilly Coppercorn paint in her loft on Yoors Street or listening as Geordie Riddell plays his fiddle outside St. Paul’s Cathedral would feel like coming home.

Ingary from Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones–Can’t you just imagine sitting on your front porch and watching Wizard Howl’s Moving Castle go by? In later books there are flying carpets and houses with infinite rooms. Apparently anything can and does happen in Ingary!

Fablehaven from the book of the same name by Brandon Mull–Seriously, how awesome would it be to wake up every day and go out to take care of endangered magical creatures? Life might not be safe but it would never be boring!

Beneath the floor boards with The Borrowers by Mary Norton–The Borrowers live in a world we should recognize but since they’re so small that they live under the floorboards and within the walls of human houses, everyday objects become almost unrecognizable. It would be so cool to go “borrowing” with one of the family and creep through a big house!

Un Lun Dun from the book of the same name by China Miéville–Un Lun Dun reminds me a lot of Wonderland but it’s not quite so random and confusing. It’s the place where lost things go and the completely unexpected regularly happens. It sounds like so much fun!

That’s my list! Have you read any of these? Would you like to live in these settings for a while? Which books did/would you choose? Link up every Tuesday at That Artsy Reader Girl!

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