My cousin Jenny (who needs a blog already!) sent me a link to this wonderful essay by Stephen King on the Harry Potter series. King’s a big fan, and he does a great job of explaining why the books became so popular in the first place. It’s interesting, because King himself has been tarred with the “popular but not a real writer” brush on many occasions. Me, I love books with lots of plot and imagination, which is why Rowling and King have prominent places on my own bookshelf.
oolookitty
August 20, 2007 — 3:29 pm
See, this is my problem with the whole Harry Potter thing. Why can’t people who read the books just enjoy them without being compelled to try to convince the rest of the world that Rowling is an “incredibly gifted novelist” and one of the “best prose stylists” in the UK? Because, I’m sorry, but no.
oolookitty
August 20, 2007 — 3:35 pm
See, this is my problem with the whole Harry Potter thing. Why can’t people who read the books just enjoy them without being compelled to try to convince the rest of the world that Rowling is an “incredibly gifted novelist” and one of the “best prose stylists” in the UK? Because, I’m sorry, but no.
oolookitty
August 20, 2007 — 3:40 pm
Oops, sorry for the double post. I’m not really so adamant about it that I needed to say it twice.