the_original_Retro t1_iydfkt6 wrote on November 30, 2022 at 4:08 PM

The general classification is "fantasy". Key word 'magical' normally moves this in to that genre.

This is really more specific - the broader category of fantasy also includes fully realized other-places such as Lord of the Rings, stories about deities, or the existence of metahumans or superhero powers in a select hidden few of our own world - so it's a "subgenre" with a focus on 'alternate-reality fantasy'.

That's more of a descriptive phrase than a label.

Parentinginapandemic OP t1_iydg1sk wrote on November 30, 2022 at 4:11 PM

Do you have any tv shows, books or movies recommendations along these lines?

Twitchunlimited t1_iydgqzu wrote on November 30, 2022 at 4:16 PM

The Magicians (for adults) & The Dragon Prince (for kids) are currently on Netflix

the_original_Retro t1_iydhwys wrote on November 30, 2022 at 4:23 PM

If you're okay with youth fiction from mid-last century, C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia is a very famous arc of many books and a few movie adaptations. "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe", first written but not chronological, was a delightful read when I was a kid, but the later ones in the series were super overbearing in their biblical parallels and I didn't like them.

Probably the most amazing trilogy I've read in my life was by a fellow Canadian - Guy Gavriel Kay's "The Fionavar Tapestry". It starts with The Summer Tree. It's big and grand and utterly amazing, and I can't recommend it enough.

StepfordMisfit t1_iydkg4u wrote on November 30, 2022 at 4:40 PM

Do you mean "magical" literally? If no, my first thought was Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day.