In defence of JK Rowling...
If there is one thing the recent Harry Potter hype has proved to me, it's the fact we HATE success in this country. The BBC forum was stuffed full of biased, inane & stupid statements all of them attacking Harry Potter or JK Rowling,all of them showed what a petty, vindictive,serville nation that we are.
It seems we condem single mothers who live on handouts as lazy & advise them to get a job, but as soon as they do ( like Mrs Rowling did) we condem them . Don't be a success in Britain, the morons will resent your success & drag you down to their level. Whatever millions JKR has made, she has made by her own hard graft & it's not her fault if her ideas have resonated with millions of people accross the globe. Many of the snide comments seem born out of the fact that her critics are jelous of the fact they never came up with the idea first, or have never ever tried to do anything with their own lives.
I tire of people calling Harry Potter "bad literiture" by comparing to classic literiture," Jayne Eyre", "War & Peace" etc. Your average 8 year old will have a difficult time getting through a Tolstoy and the points that Tolstoy is making will probably go over their heads anyway. Having worked in the book trade for 7 years I saw too many people buying "classic literiture" just so they could have it on the shelves & say "I own that". I have a deep seated mistrust of anyone whose books are in mint condition, a book was made to be read, not gather dust. Whilst we're on the subject what is wrong with adults reading childrens books? if it floats your boat, why not.Critics read childrend books all the time. Also may adults but collect AA Milne & Beatrix Potter books, odd how we never apply the same snobby criteria to them.
Finally, magic & fantasy in childrens literiture. First of all -IT'S NOT A "DOORWAY TO THE OCCULT" & even if it is, who cares? Well the Christian fundermentalists do , but they hate anything that not Christian ( I apolgise to the tolerant minority who do class themselves as Christians,by the way. Only the other day in the paper a Xtian was calling Paganism " an evil sect" & went onto say that it should be "exterminated" . I wonder if said gentleman was a Dalek or Nazi, same difference really. Anyway back to childrens literature which has always been full of magic and wizards The Hobbit, Meg & Mog, Fighting Fantasy, Alan Garner(if you thing that JK Rowling is dark give Garner a try) the list of childrens books ( and TV programmes with supernatural elemnts ) on and on, why because children love it.
So here is to supernatural childrens literature, good for aduts & children alike.
If there is one thing the recent Harry Potter hype has proved to me, it's the fact we HATE success in this country. The BBC forum was stuffed full of biased, inane & stupid statements all of them attacking Harry Potter or JK Rowling,all of them showed what a petty, vindictive,serville nation that we are.
It seems we condem single mothers who live on handouts as lazy & advise them to get a job, but as soon as they do ( like Mrs Rowling did) we condem them . Don't be a success in Britain, the morons will resent your success & drag you down to their level. Whatever millions JKR has made, she has made by her own hard graft & it's not her fault if her ideas have resonated with millions of people accross the globe. Many of the snide comments seem born out of the fact that her critics are jelous of the fact they never came up with the idea first, or have never ever tried to do anything with their own lives.
I tire of people calling Harry Potter "bad literiture" by comparing to classic literiture," Jayne Eyre", "War & Peace" etc. Your average 8 year old will have a difficult time getting through a Tolstoy and the points that Tolstoy is making will probably go over their heads anyway. Having worked in the book trade for 7 years I saw too many people buying "classic literiture" just so they could have it on the shelves & say "I own that". I have a deep seated mistrust of anyone whose books are in mint condition, a book was made to be read, not gather dust. Whilst we're on the subject what is wrong with adults reading childrens books? if it floats your boat, why not.Critics read childrend books all the time. Also may adults but collect AA Milne & Beatrix Potter books, odd how we never apply the same snobby criteria to them.
Finally, magic & fantasy in childrens literiture. First of all -IT'S NOT A "DOORWAY TO THE OCCULT" & even if it is, who cares? Well the Christian fundermentalists do , but they hate anything that not Christian ( I apolgise to the tolerant minority who do class themselves as Christians,by the way. Only the other day in the paper a Xtian was calling Paganism " an evil sect" & went onto say that it should be "exterminated" . I wonder if said gentleman was a Dalek or Nazi, same difference really. Anyway back to childrens literature which has always been full of magic and wizards The Hobbit, Meg & Mog, Fighting Fantasy, Alan Garner(if you thing that JK Rowling is dark give Garner a try) the list of childrens books ( and TV programmes with supernatural elemnts ) on and on, why because children love it.
So here is to supernatural childrens literature, good for aduts & children alike.
VIEW 4 of 4 COMMENTS
it was called Jesus Camp...very disturbing film
and fuck them...I adore the books, lots of classic literature is shit..just because it is old doesn't mean it is good..I hate people like that.
and I think what Mrs. Rowling has accomplished is beyond words...people of all ages read her books..if you can get that many people to sit down and read..congratulations! she deserves all of her success and more
You too!!!