July 24, 2007

Comments (17)

  • Enjoy! See you in a couple of days!

    Dmitry's right, you know. It's not, BTW, just that Rowling did a good job, it's that being the last in the series, it's 759 page of building climax rather than the usual 500 pages of setup first.

  • Anne,

    Give me a call if you want any spoilers! I can tell you everyone who lives and dies. No problem.

    Louis

  • Gee, thanks, Louis. I already know of one death coming up (not someone I'm going to grieve about).

    So far, however, it's not holding my interest terribly well. Probably because the last time I read a Potter book was when #6 came out, so I've forgotten some of the characters, what is a "horcrux", etc.

  • Mommy and Daddy and I got to see the Order of Phoenix at the theater today.  It was a good movie.  All of the movies have been on TV lately, so I was all caught up before this one came out.  I have been asking mommy to watch Harry Potter a lot lately.  She thought I might be a bit scared, but I never was, even with the dementors.  I mostly just laugh at them.  THey're silly.  I'm all ready to go with Gran to visit Hogwarts when it is built (Florida, right?)

    Mommy says, if she was into reading fiction books, Harry Potter would certainly be up there on her list, but, for now, she'll stick to her non-fiction and wait for the movie to come out.  It's one hobby at a time, and right now, she is spending her free time catching up on my scrapbook before Baby Sister gets here (soon, she hopes)

  • You bet we're going to go to the Harry Potter park when it's completed down there in Orlando, Hannah.

    BTW, the book picks up.

  • Hannah, if your mommy doesn't want to read the books, hey, that's her business. But just you tell her for me that the books are a LOT better than the movies.

  • Meg has been reading the book, which is borrowed from a friend, and I hope I am next in line to read it.  Despite being glued to the thing, she says it isn't as good as she could have wished. I think she kind of wishes it was, well, as clever and funny as the first ones. She says there's plenty going on right from the beginning, but that it isn't "759 pages of pure excitement" as Charles put it.

    I'm surprised that there are poeple who get their knickers in a twist about Harry, when Roald Dahl had some decidedly creepy, dark, twisted stories meant for little ones. No one's banning *him*, are they?

  • Done!

    It picks up speed after the first 1/4 - 1/3, I thought. And it most assuredly does have twists and turns!

    Hoo boy...didn't see that coming. =8^o

    I agree with Meg, Eleanor, and also wish the series hadn't lost the "fun" feel the first couple of books had. Does anyone know whether or not Rowling's going to continue to write? She's still an awfully entertaining writer with an extraordinary imagination and knack of characterization; it'd be a pity were she to stop just because she's now richer'n the queen.

  • It's kind of shame that they get darker and less fun, but isn't that what it's like going from 11 to 17, especially since in Harry's world 17 represents adulthood? Life gets better in a lot of ways, but decidedly less "fun."

    So maybe a coming of age series (and it is that, despite being other things as well) that's rollicking good fun just doesn't make sense.

  • It's fiction, Jane, it doesn't have to "make sense".

    For pity's sake, this about a series with Whomping Willows and clocks that show family members' whereabouts?

  • J. K. Rowling stated during a recent interview that there will, of course, but no more "Harry Potter" books, but that she is probably going to put out a "Harry Potter Encyclopedia".

    As an instance, J.K. stated that Sean Seamus had an interesting back-story, but that she could never fit it into a book. Hence, in the encyclopedia, you could read that story. The encyclopedia would also give you the list of Headmasters of Hogwarts since Dumblerdore, and other such information.

  • That'll be interesting to read, Louis.

    BTW, if anyone would like to post a thought of theirs regarding what happened in the final book, go to my alternate blog: http://gryphonette.blogspot.com/

    If you've not yet read it, though, stay away.

  • Yes, but there's such a thing as literary sense. The story has to ring true -- even with fantastic elements, it has to make sense with the human experience to some degree.

  • Except there are kids starting to read the series now, for instance, those who weren't even born when the first book was published. They're not going to wait to read the series on the published schedule, waiting 1-2 years between them. So here's a nine or ten year old finally reading The Sorcerer's Stone, who then goes on to read the rest of the books in turn. Quite rapidly they are no longer suited for that child's age group.

    I think it wasn't a very way smart - or thoughtful - way to go on. An author should decide what type of book a series is going to be and then be consistent, not go changing it so that the target audience for the first book is not the same target audience for one of the subsequent books.

  • They were a fad - or so she thought. Who'da thunk they'd become such a phenomenon?

    OTOH, by the time she got to writing the later books, she knew just how well received the series has been. Future classic, by most reports. She could have known by then, but maybe she had them all planned out? Didn't I read something like that?

    Just a thought.

    me<><

  • I daresay she had a broad outline planned out for each book, but the de'il's in the details, donchaknow.

  • I've let Grace, my eight year old, read the first two, but I won't be letting her read the rest anytime soon.  FWIW, I have several books in the house that the kids know are off-limits until they reach a certain age/maturity level.

    So I don't see it as too much of a problem.

Comments are closed.

Post a Comment