Vita Nostra pop culture Growing up a second-generation Hungarian

Growing up a second-generation Hungarian Jew meant Jeremy Salamon spent a lot of time with family

bright life and the devastation of his loss--from the harrowing illness to the vivid

Photography by Simone Hawlisch

In the accompanying guidebook

Vita Nostra pop culture Growing up a second-generation Hungarian"Vita Nostra" a cross between Lev Grossman's "The Magicians" and Elizabeth Kostova's "The Historian" [] is the anti Harry Potter you didn't know you wanted." The Washington Post "Vita Nostra has become a powerful influence on my own writing. It's a book that has the potential to become a modern classic of its genre, and I couldn't be more excited to see it get the global audience in English it so richly deserves." Lev Grossman Best Books of November