Top Ten Tuesday

Back To School – Favorite Books Set in School {Top Ten Tuesday}

160830 TTT School Settings

Hosted by The Broke & The Bookish

In honor of the new school year starting for many, this week’s Top Ten Tuesday is all about books set in school.

Now, I haven’t been in school myself for a few years now, but I still love reading books set in school. Whether it’s high school, college or boarding school, I love it all. Some of those books make me feel all nostalgic and make me want to go back to school (I was actually one of those people who liked going to school) and some books however do make me feel a little glad that I’m out of there. But either way, I love seeing school settings in books.

So without further ado, here are some of my favorite books set in a school setting:

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

HOGWARTS, HOGWARTS! MIGHTY, MIGHTY HOGWARTS! Of course I have to start with this one. Don’t we all wish we could go to Hogwarts to study wizardry?

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

This story of a girl with social anxiety trying to survive her first year of college was super relatable. Plus, it introduced me to the wonderful world of Simon and Baz!

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Sure, the Watford School of Magicks is obviously inspired by Hogwarts. Does that make it any less amazing? I don’t think so.

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Simon vs the Home Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Oh, this book made me feel SUPER nostalgic for high school. And it made me want to join the theatre group. Our school never had a theatre group. Also, I don’t like theatre. But still, this book made me want to!

All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

One of the most beautiful but heart-breaking stories I’ve read this year about two teens meeting eachother on the ledge of their school bell tower.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Just like Harry Potter made everyone wish they could go to Hogwarts, this book made everyone wish they could go to boarding school in Paris.

Paper Towns by John Green

Paper Towns by John Green

At first glance, this is a ‘mystery’ contemporary about a girl who disappeared and a boy looking for her. But the underlying current that I loved about it was the message that high school is fleeting and you should treasure the moments and friends you make there.

The Exiled Queen by Cinda Williams Chima

The Exiled Queen by Cinda Williams Chima

Ok, so this is actually the second book in the amazing Seven Realms series (seriously, it’s amazing, please read it if you haven’t yet) but this is the one installment of the series that mostly takes place at Oden’s Ford. Which is basically a wizarding and an army academy next to each other. Needless to say, it is awesome!

The Elemental Trilogy by Sherry Thomas

The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas The Immortal Heights by Sherry Thomas

Another fantasy set in a school environment! In this one, our main heroine is forced to go undercover as a boy at Eton College, an English boys’ boarding school. Yes, I know that sounds crazy, but it’s also sooo good. I think this is one of the most underrated series out there.

The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

This classic coming-of-age story just had to be on this list if only because Charlie may just be one of my favorite main characters. Also, the movie is pretty good too and even though I read the book first, Logan Lerman will always be Charlie in my mind.

Are you one of those people going back to school or has school already been a few years for you too? How do you feel about books set in school?

30 Comments

  1. I loved Fangirl, great pick! One of the better books I’ve read about the college experience I think. Plus it’s just a feel good book. Good point about Paper Towns too and how high school goes fast. Great list.

    1. Thanks! Fangirl was great indeed, I thought it was funny and relatable! And while I was not such a fan of the Margo aspect of Paper Towns, I loved all the high school parts 🙂

  2. Although it isn’t strictly speaking set in school, I’d add Ender’s Game to this list. My TTT lists some sci-fi cat books to read instead of doing homework.

    1. I unfortunately still have to read Ender’s Game, but it’s one I definitely plan to read soon!

  3. I love book set in a school! 🙂 Harry Potter is the ultimate school book I think. I work in a school as a teacher, so I never quite escape!

    1. Oh as a teacher the back-to-school-feeling must be pretty strong right now 🙂 But yes, I think almost everybody would love to go to Hogwarts 😉

  4. Of these I’ve read Harry Potter, Fangirl, Anna, and the Elemental Trilogy. I did a similar (all SFF) list and also included the Elemental Trilogy.

    Check out my list: Care to Matriculate?: Ten Top Schools of Magic & Science

    1. Oh great, someone else who has read the Elemental trilogy! I love this series so much but I feel like not that many people have read it. Will definitely check out your list!

  5. So many great ones here!! I loved Fangirl and Carry On so much. Rowell is a favorite author for me. Anna has the best school setting for me. I mean Paris!! I still need to read HP and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Great list!

    1. Oh yes, Rainbow Rowell is great! I love all her books, though I still have to read Eleanor and Park (*shame*) And yes, who wouldn’t love to go to school in Paris? 😉

  6. If it has to be in school, then why not a boarding school in Paris! Yes to Anna.

    Here’s my Top Ten: Ten Books I’d Have Every Elementary Student Read*!

    1. Exactly 🙂 Boarding school in Paris does not sound so bad 😉

  7. Oh wow, we picked the same topic this week 🙂 I’ve never read the Elemental Trilogy before so I’ll have to give that a go since I do love books that are set in schools.

    1. I love the Elemental trilogy, so I hope you’ll enjoy it 😉

  8. I adore so many of these books! I love books set in school. Perks, Anna, and HP are some of my absolute favorites. Lovely list!
    My Top Ten

    1. Thanks! They’re definitely some of my favorites too 🙂

  9. I loved Fangirl. The entire college experience in that book felt extremely realistic to me instead of the “oh look I’ve been here 2 days and am happily well-adjusted with no problems at all.”

    1. Exactly! It was so great to read about a college experience that felt realistic and more relatable than the scenario you described 🙂

  10. Great Top Ten! I’ve only read a couple of these books. Will have to check out the rest!
    Every time the topic of books with school settings comes up, my brain automatically goes to Stephanie Perkins books! My favorite is Lola! 😀
    My Top Ten Tuesday!

    1. Thanks! Yes, Stephanie Perkins is pretty great for schoolish books! I loved Lola a lot too – you can’t help but love her and Cricket 😉

  11. I love books set at school!!! I loved the setting of Anna and the French Kiss…. really made me want to go back in time and go to French boarding school!!

    1. Me too, even though I’m not in school anymore, I still want to go to boarding school in Paris 😉

  12. Well, we obviously have great taste 🙂 I have a few of these on my list , I also love HP, Simon, and Anna. As I said, you have great taste!

    1. Hey, they do say great minds think alike 😉 HP, Simon and Anna are definitely some of my all-time favorites!

  13. Krista says:

    The Seven Realms series is absolutely the most fantastic fantasy series I’ve ever read. Thanks for singing its praises – and Exiled Queen is a great pick for this list!

    TTT @ Krista’s Dust Jacket

    1. Yes, it is absolutely amazing and I wouldn’t mind singing its praises all day long 😉

  14. My friend is reading The Exiled Queen right now and loving it! I’ll have to tell her it made your list. Personally, I loved Fangirl. Nice list!

    1. Oh that’s great! I really loved the Exiled Queen and it also means there are still two amazing books after that to look forward to 🙂 Fangirl is one of my all-time favorites, glad you loved it too!

  15. The Seven Realms is so great! I keep seeing The Elemental trilogy. The covers are so pretty. 😀

    1. The Seven Realms is for sure one of my favorites! And the Elemental trilogy as well, the inside is definitely as good as the covers 😉

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