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Thread: Who's excited about J K Rowling's new book?

  1. #91
    confidentially pleased cacian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by mona amon View Post
    Just finished the Casual Vacancy. It was OK - not bad, not great. Definitely not on par with the wonderful HP books, but I don't think anyone was expecting it to be.

    The HP characters are larger than life, cast in the heroic mould, battling it out in extreme situations. This book is about small people in a small town, with their small everyday concerns and predictable peccadilloes and neuroses.

    While each chapter had me interested and involved (I was certainly not hovering over the story in a detached way, as happens with some books), I feel it lacked focus or something and don't feel she did a good job of tying up the various threads in the end. I didn't crack a smile. I didn't shed a tear. Maybe I just didn't get it, but I closed the book feeling unsatisfied, though not disatisfied, and that's the reason for my lukewarm review.

    My rating - 5.5/10
    Hi mona amon
    Just a question did toou get an idea of why the sudden shift of styke?
    I am trying to understand the title and how it actually fit in the story.
    I had a different conversation somewhere else about but still could not figure it out.
    Thank you.
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  2. #92
    All are at the crossroads qimissung's Avatar
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    That's my feeling, too, Mona.
    "The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its' own reason for existing." ~ Albert Einstein
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  3. #93
    Maybe YesNo's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by JBI View Post
    The biggest seller of the cultural revolution, Maos red book is the best selling book in the last 1500 years without a doubt. It resonated over a decade with so many people. Does that make it excellent literature?
    I would place The Quotations of Chairman Mao more with the required reading in a literature class, like Eliot's The Wasteland. It is clear why these are read--for survival, not enjoyment. Neither of these examples, in my view, are great literature.

    However, getting a bestseller in a free market place deserves to be acknowledged as an achievement. The most important question is how that happened, not a rant disparaging both the author and her readership that it should not have happened.

  4. #94
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    I am into the Potter series & never to review them as they are a special matter to my heart. I shall not enjoy a novel by Rowling for adults. I don't know why!

  5. #95
    Quote Originally Posted by YesNo View Post
    I would place The Quotations of Chairman Mao more with the required reading in a literature class, like Eliot's The Wasteland. It is clear why these are read--for survival, not enjoyment. Neither of these examples, in my view, are great literature.


    I'm seriously getting sick of this sort of ridiculous statement.

    I read The Wasteland for enjoyment. It was an incredibly enjoyable experience for me. I know a ton of others who have also read it for enjoyment.

    You're wrong.
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  6. #96
    A User, but Registered! tonywalt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nevey View Post
    I am into the Potter series & never to review them as they are a special matter to my heart. I shall not enjoy a novel by Rowling for adults. I don't know why!

    Will you read other books for adults? Or just continue on with Children' fantasy books?

  7. #97
    Registered User Emil Miller's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by tonywalt View Post
    Will you read other books for adults? Or just continue on with Children' fantasy books?
    I can't believe that anyone over the age of eleven would read HP , with the exception of children's book reviewers, because as far as literature is concerned, the phrase reductio ad absurdum comes to mind. The same goes for films about Batman. When I was about nine-years-old, a friend and I fantasised about being Batman and Robin, but obviously one grows out of such things: or does one? Now I see Batman is not a kid's entertainment but, with a bit of extra violence thrown in and presumably, some sex and a few computer graphics, he is suddenly 'adult' entertainment. Barnum was wrong; there isn't one born every minute, there are dozens.
    "L'art de la statistique est de tirer des conclusions erronèes a partir de chiffres exacts." Napoléon Bonaparte.

    "Je crois que beaucoup de gens sont dans cet état d’esprit: au fond, ils ne sentent pas concernés par l’Histoire. Mais pourtant, de temps à autre, l’Histoire pose sa main sur eux." Michel Houellebecq.

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    Mostly because the Harry Potter books got more graphic as they went on. People get tortured violently, expletives are used(In book 7, a character gave his brother a middle finger), very expletive references to sex. It wasn't just to pander to older readers either. Rowling planned that from the beginning. I mean, its a series about a kid who is destined to face off against a wizard Hitler who killed thousands of innocents when he was alive, including the main character's parents. Thing was going to get violent eventually.

    I'm not trying to defend the quality of the books, but it was clear the series was getting to get too dark for kids later on.

  9. #99
    Registered User Emil Miller's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mr.lucifer View Post
    Mostly because the Harry Potter books got more graphic as they went on. People get tortured violently, expletives are used(In book 7, a character gave his brother a middle finger), very expletive references to sex. It wasn't just to pander to older readers either. Rowling planned that from the beginning. I mean, its a series about a kid who is destined to face off against a wizard Hitler who killed thousands of innocents when he was alive, including the main character's parents. Thing was going to get violent eventually.

    I'm not trying to defend the quality of the books, but it was clear the series was getting to get too dark for kids later on.
    I think this is because her publishers realised that some adults were reading her and asked her to raise the bar to keep the ball rolling. It's instructive to note that she hasn't ruled out yet another Potter book should the attempt at writing serious fiction fail.
    "L'art de la statistique est de tirer des conclusions erronèes a partir de chiffres exacts." Napoléon Bonaparte.

    "Je crois que beaucoup de gens sont dans cet état d’esprit: au fond, ils ne sentent pas concernés par l’Histoire. Mais pourtant, de temps à autre, l’Histoire pose sa main sur eux." Michel Houellebecq.

  10. #100
    A User, but Registered! tonywalt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Emil Miller View Post
    I can't believe that anyone over the age of eleven would read HP , with the exception of children's book reviewers, because as far as literature is concerned, the phrase reductio ad absurdum comes to mind. The same goes for films about Batman. When I was about nine-years-old, a friend and I fantasised about being Batman and Robin, but obviously one grows out of such things: or does one? Now I see Batman is not a kid's entertainment but, with a bit of extra violence thrown in and presumably, some sex and a few computer graphics, he is suddenly 'adult' entertainment. Barnum was wrong; there isn't one born every minute, there are dozens.
    My neices and nephews love any entertainment that is fast, loud, explosive, and with a very formulaic plot. As for reading......

    There is hope though, quite a few very young people here-good for them.

  11. #101
    Bibliophile Drkshadow03's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by tonywalt View Post
    Will you read other books for adults? Or just continue on with Children' fantasy books?
    I can't speak for him or her, but I didn't read HP for the first time until I was 20. I read plenty of other stuff.
    "You understand well enough what slavery is, but freedom you have never experienced, so you do not know if it tastes sweet or bitter. If you ever did come to experience it, you would advise us to fight for it not with spears only, but with axes too." - Herodotus

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  12. #102
    Bibliophile JBI's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by YesNo View Post
    I would place The Quotations of Chairman Mao more with the required reading in a literature class, like Eliot's The Wasteland. It is clear why these are read--for survival, not enjoyment. Neither of these examples, in my view, are great literature.

    However, getting a bestseller in a free market place deserves to be acknowledged as an achievement. The most important question is how that happened, not a rant disparaging both the author and her readership that it should not have happened.
    Have you read Mao? He was regarded as a literary genius by the early 30s primarily for his work on Guerrilla warfare. Much of his reception and success rested on his literary and artistic prowess.

    I do not know how much comes through in translation, but he wasn't exactly stupid.

    As for required reading and whatnot, how much of Rowling's sales do you attribute to advertising, rather formal or informal? If advertising did not work, nobody would do it.

    Case and point this book here - the propaganda of the text basically generated its sales - the book from what I gather would have remained unpublished or unread had it not been for the fuel of her advertisement.

    Hao Ran would not have been the biggest author of the 70s if it weren't for state backing. Rowling not the biggest of the late 90s early 2000s if not for corporate backing. Do not get delusions that somehow this has something to do with their excellence as authors.

  13. #103
    Artist and Bibliophile stlukesguild's Avatar
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    I would place The Quotations of Chairman Mao more with the required reading in a literature class, like Eliot's The Wasteland. It is clear why these are read--for survival, not enjoyment. Neither of these examples, in my view, are great literature.

    As opposed to Laura Day's books, no doubt.

    Personally, I have read The Wasteland dozens of times... and I surely wouldn't have wasted my time if I didn't gain a good deal of pleasure from the experience. Indeed, I would count The Wasteland among the few dozen books that have had the greatest impact on me.
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  14. #104
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pierre Menard View Post
    I'm seriously getting sick of this sort of ridiculous statement.

    I read The Wasteland for enjoyment. It was an incredibly enjoyable experience for me. I know a ton of others who have also read it for enjoyment.

    You're wrong.
    You beat me to it with this comment, Pierre.
    Quote Originally Posted by YesNo View Post

    However, getting a bestseller in a free market place deserves to be acknowledged as an achievement. The most important question is how that happened, not a rant disparaging both the author and her readership that it should not have happened.
    It's an achievement, yes, but one must consider what kind of an achievement that is--if you're asserting that any piece of art that gains huge success in a free market is somehow a substantial measure of worth, I guess we can put the "good art" label on Lady Gaga, Kesha, and Justin Bieber. They've all undoubtedly had quite astounding achievements culturally, monetarily, and business-wise, but artistically? Arguable at best.
    Quote Originally Posted by Emil Miller View Post
    I can't believe that anyone over the age of eleven would read HP , with the exception of children's book reviewers, because as far as literature is concerned, the phrase reductio ad absurdum comes to mind. The same goes for films about Batman. When I was about nine-years-old, a friend and I fantasised about being Batman and Robin, but obviously one grows out of such things: or does one? Now I see Batman is not a kid's entertainment but, with a bit of extra violence thrown in and presumably, some sex and a few computer graphics, he is suddenly 'adult' entertainment. Barnum was wrong; there isn't one born every minute, there are dozens.
    Yes, but let's keep in mind that you find any film made after WWII to be overly stimulative.
    Quote Originally Posted by Mr.lucifer View Post
    Mostly because the Harry Potter books got more graphic as they went on. People get tortured violently, expletives are used(In book 7, a character gave his brother a middle finger), very expletive references to sex. It wasn't just to pander to older readers either. Rowling planned that from the beginning. I mean, its a series about a kid who is destined to face off against a wizard Hitler who killed thousands of innocents when he was alive, including the main character's parents. Thing was going to get violent eventually.

    I'm not trying to defend the quality of the books, but it was clear the series was getting to get too dark for kids later on.
    I don't buy into this whole "she had it all planned out" crap. I read the first book and seen some of the movies, and I honestly believe she was just making it up as she goes. There're so many things that just come out of nowhere (not to mention magic to help get out of tricky potholes she'd write herself into) and complete irrelevancies to the larger story (I believe I remember a friend of mine telling my about a plot deviation about Hermione wanting equal rights for trolls that worked at Hogwarts or something--wtf?). That isn't anything unique to long fantasy series. The Wheel of Time, A Song of Ice and Fire, hell, even Gerofe Lucas claimed to have all 6 episodes of Star Wars planned out before even making A New Hope, and I don't buy that for a second.


    As to evaluating the quality of children's literature, that seems like something very hard for an adult reader (or, at least, this adult reader) to do. How can I judge how good a book for children is? I'm not a child anymore. I can say what children's boom I've enjoyed, sure, but I don't know if that says anything about the quality of the book as it pertains to its genre.

  15. #105
    Bibliophile JBI's Avatar
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    It makes no difference. The bulk of potter readers were adults and the later books were marketed for young adults. This children's lit excuse makes no sense.

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