Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Set in a version of Regency England where practical magic has long since vanished, Susanna Clarke's debut follows the reclusive Gilbert Norrell as he proves that English magic still works, and the charming young gentleman magician Jonathan Strange, whom he takes on as a student. Their partnership carries Strange through the Napoleonic Wars and Norrell into London society, but the fairy they have both bargained with threatens every household touched by their ambition. Told in faux nineteenth-century prose with a scholarly apparatus of invented footnotes, the novel reads as both a sprawling fantasy epic and a mock history of English magic.
Where Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell keeps showing up
Eleven of our editors' lists feature this novel.
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What you might want to know about Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
In an alternate Regency England where practical magic has been dormant for centuries, the dour Mr. Norrell brings it back single-handed. Then a flashier magician named Jonathan Strange becomes his student, and his rival.
Yes. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is around 800 pages with extensive footnotes that read like a real history of English magic. The Regency-era prose is rich. Most readers find rewards in slowing down rather than racing through.
No. Piranesi (2020) is a much shorter standalone in a different style. Susanna Clarke's two novels are independent. Many readers prefer to start with Piranesi for its accessibility and discover Jonathan Strange afterward.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was written by Susanna Clarke, published in 2004 by Bloomsbury USA.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is 800 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell takes most readers 12 to 17 hours to finish.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a standalone novel by Susanna Clarke, not part of a series.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
