Life after Harry Potter? Fans and publishers are wondering what to do next

Sun Sentinel ^ | July 8 2007 | Chauncey Mabe

[Caipirabob]

Nearly a decade ago, Eileen McNally caught an NPR interview with an obscure writer named J.K. Rowling. The book being discussed, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, sounded like fun, so McNally picked it up for her 9-year-old niece.

"I bought it for her to read on the plane home to Buffalo," says McNally, now director of the Florida Center for the Book at the Broward County Library. "But Shannon read the entire thing standing in line at Disney World. I was flabbergasted. That's when I knew this was something special."

Special, indeed. The six Harry Potter books published since 1997 have so far sold more than 325 million copies in 65 languages. They've spawned a blockbuster movie franchise and a merchandising empire, and made Rowling, by some reports, richer than the Queen of England.

[Caipirabob]

The Wiccan Wonder pulls in loads of galleons to the point of making the Queen of England herself look like a "Yoeman" in comparison of bankrolls. And if she's a Yoeman then Charles is a soccer Yob from Wythenshawe.

To our British friends, no offense to the Queen, of course. Charles, however...

Really, this is a brilliant series of books. I'm waiting for the final chapter to arrive the day it's released and taking the wife to the movies this weekend. First time since last summer.

Rowling tells a great story and melds a likable character with a continually darker struggle against evil. My son is 9 and has read all of the books.

Good stuff there. Enjoy...

[Caipirabob]

Oh Jesus Christ, the world is going to hell in a hand basket and were worried about Harry.

Jesus would probably tell you "It's a book..."

I think this is a significant cultural event.

Millions upon millions of children will read these stories.

It is as significant as "Lord Of The Rings", "Narnia" or any other literary staple you can name.

It's ingrained in our culture, so like it our not it's here to stay.

Besides, Potter threads are so much more enjoyable than a "We're all going to die of something or other" threads.

Kids will be growing up with these books, so as a cultural event I think this has a place in a thread here.

So much for this thread...

[Caipirabob]

Sunday morning Potter Ping!

Cheers, y'all!

[windsorknot]

How about “Harry Reid and the Chamber of Stupidity”?

[OKIEDOC]

Funny but my kids just watched on television another Harry Potter movie and yes I watched and enjoyed.

[avital2]

i am no kid and have thoroughly enjoyed the books and the movies thus far!

[Darkwolf377]

Life after Harry Potter? Fans and publishers are wondering what to do next

I don't care about the Potter phenom but it's fine others do; yet the title has me thinking 'Get a life, maybe?"

I'm not talking about the books or the fans, but about the over-dramatizing NPR types do over this kind of thing.

When you're a kid, you read a book, enjoy it, and unless you're some hysteric or dweeb, you then go outside and play, and the book becomes part of your interior life. That's all.

The precious NPR types--the adults who read these books for themselves and yet can't be bothered to read much of substance other than The New Yorker (and they never read the whole magazine)--are so busily enshrining their "childlike self" they never stop to think that they're raising their kids to be as neurotically over-attached to the things they like as they are.

[SauronOfMordor]

JK Rowlings books are what I used to get my younger two kids reading after the Dr Seuss stage. For producing books that kids are enthusiastic about reading, and thus make it easy for me to get my kids into “chapter book” stage, I think she’s earned every penny

[OKIEDOC]

That wasn’t a put down on FReepers/you, I enjoyed the movies also.

My children are young so we see them at least 8 to 10 times before they go on to another movie.

[Dick Bachert]

How about these folks GET LIVES???

[listenhillary]

I’ve always wondered which publishers passed on Rowling’s first book and how they feel now.

I am sure there is other fiction of the caliber of Harry Potter being turned away by publishers right now.

[elizabetty]

The fans can read something else.

The publishers can count their money.

Next problem?

[R.W.Ratikal]

To everything there is a season.
To every time there is an end.

[SamAdams76]

I remember growing up in the early 1970s when the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien were controversial. Our principal had the Hobbit books banned from school and many religious leaders at the time condemned it for promoting black magic and dark arts to the children.

What a difference 30 years can make. Now the same people condemning the Potter series hold up J.R.R. Tolkien as an example of "good fantasy fiction."

For me, the most amazing difference is that "Lord Of The Rings" was considered a children's book at all. We read those books in 4th grade yet it would be a challenging book for most grade school kids today.

I like the Potter series but it's similar to other serial books I read as a child - The Hardy Boys, The Happy Hollisters, etc. I even read my sister's Nancy Drew because books were a lot harder to come by in those days and I read whatever I could get my hands on.

[OKIEDOC]

Just as with the Sopranos i guess it’s time for Harry to bite the dust.

To bad that dosen’t work for Nancy Peloser and Hairy Read. LOL.

[Caipirabob]

How about “Harry Reid and the Chamber of Stupidity”?

LOL! However, it would belong in "Non-fiction"...

[Maigrey]

No. The kids then graduate from Harry Potter to Robert Jordan, George RR Martin, Margaret Weis/Tracy Hickman, and Terry Goodkind......

[Fzob]

Life after Harry Potter?

It will be replaced with the next thing to amuse ourselves. Life will go on.

[hoosierham]

How about “Harry Reid and the Chamber of Stupidity”?

That belongs in the horror section.