Guest post written by The Magic All Around author Jennifer Moorman
Born and raised in southern Georgia, where honeysuckle grows wild and the whippoorwills sing, Jennifer Moorman is the bestselling author of the magical realism Mystic Water series. Her most recent novel is The Magic All Around. Jennifer started writing in elementary school, crafting epic tales of adventure and love and magic. She wrote stories in Mead notebooks, on printer paper, on napkins, on the soles of her shoes. Her blog is full of dishes inspired by fiction, and she hosts baking classes showcasing these recipes. Jennifer considers herself a traveler, a baker, and a dreamer. She can always be won over with chocolate, unicorns, or rainbows. She believes in love—everlasting and forever.
From the moment I was gifted Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time in the sixth grade, I was transported into another world, another time, and into a deep love of reading that I hadn’t experienced until then. Books became places I could disappear into. I could travel to towns, planets, and alternate universes populated by characters I loved and felt a kinship to.
Books are unique and personal to every person, but through the years, I’ve found there are a handful of books that are treasured in the same way. These are the books that many of us would gladly open and walk into, if that were possible.
Here are the 5 fictional places I wish were real:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
The Harry Potter series is a beloved seven-book fantasy series that follows the life, trials, and triumphs of the boy wizard Harry Potter, along with his closest friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. So many of us feel they’re our best friends too, along with an entire world populated by witches, wizards, and Muggles that we adore (and loathe). We root for them and cry with them.
I’m not the only person who wishes she’d received a letter, penned in calligraphy and sealed with magic, from Hogwarts, stating I’ve been accepted into the school. I’d still gladly accept that letter even though I’ve aged out of being a first year! We want to get our list of classes and buy our books in Diagon Alley. We know which wand we’d receive (I’m bendy willow with a unicorn hair core!), and we’d try and conjure our unique Patronus. We’d feel jittery sitting beneath the Sorting Hat, wondering which house is our destiny. We dream of visiting Hogsmeade and packing our pockets with sweets from Honeydukes, and we imagine being asked to the Yule Ball. This is a world I escape into time and time again, and I have a feeling I’d recognize a lot of my friends’ faces there with me.
Narnia from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is part of a seven-book fantasy series titled The Chronicles of Narnia. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is the second book, although it was the first book published in the series. This book tells the story of four ordinary children: Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie.
Lucy is the first child to walk through the magical wardrobe and enter Narnia. How many of us have seen an oversize wardrobe and asked, Does this lead to Narnia? How many of us have opened every one we’ve seen just in case? When we first arrive in Narnia with Lucy, it is eternal winter, but we can still feel the beauty of the land. As the story unfolds, the changing of the seasons returns, and Narnia bursts into vibrant color. Aslan’s country is stunning, fantastical, and filled with dangers that we believe we’ll triumph through. We imagine having tea with Mr. Tumnus in his cozy house, and we know if we stood inside Cair Paravel that we, too, would feel like kings and queens. I’ll likely never stop opening wardrobes and holding my breath, wondering, Could this be the one?
Emerald City from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum
I’ll admit that I saw the movie The Wizard of Oz dozens of times before I ever read the books. Every year when I was growing up, the classic channel played the movie, and every year I sat enraptured by it. Each time Dorothy leaves the black and white Kansas and enters the full-color Munchkinland, we marvel in wonder at the magical transition.
We pretend Glenda floats in and offers us the ruby slippers (they’re actually silver in the book!), and we feel confident we’d follow the yellow brick road if given the chance. We imagine meeting the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion, and we know we’d all be best friends who guide one another along the way. We’d be stunned by the beauty and sparkle of Emerald City, and part of us would never want to leave. At least we know that when we have to come back to “the real world,” we can return to Oz anytime we want.
Willy Wonka’s Factory from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Is there any kid (or adult) who wouldn’t sincerely want to find a golden ticket? How many chocolate bars would we buy to ensure we secured that coveted entrance into Willy Wonka’s factory? Anyone who loves chocolate like I do would be over the moon thrilled to be invited inside the hallowed, very-secret halls of Willy’s factory.
We daydream about a place where everything is edible, where we can walk through an entire room made completely of chocolate. The floor, the trees, the flowers, even a river! Every dream we have of plucking a flower from the ground and eating its chocolate petals comes to life. And it doesn’t stop there—there are dozens of other ridiculously fantastic treats like a chewing gum meal, edible marshmallow pillows, everlasting gobstoppers, and invisible chocolate bars for eating in class. Meeting the eccentric and brilliant owner is at the top of our list too!
Pemberley from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Pemberley is the country estate owned by the dashing Fitzwilliam Darcy, one of our favorite male protagonists created by Jane Austen. Austen describes the estate as a beautiful affair situated in the English countryside. Elizabeth Bennet, our beloved heroine, is charmed by the home and by Mr. Darcy. Aren’t we all?
While we know it takes a bit of time before our cherished characters accept and proclaim their love for one another—both victims of pride and stubbornness—we know Mr. Darcy is a real gentleman and Elizabeth is an intelligent, loving woman. We champion for them the whole time. While they figure out their feelings, we’d gladly accept an invitation to tea at Pemberley and allow the host to graciously welcome us onto his grand estate. We would be most pleased to stroll those gardens.
