Comments on: Harry Potter and the Six Consecutive Adverbs http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/ Behind the Book Reviews--The Official Blog of Booklist Online Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:12:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 By: Keir http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/comment-page-1/#comment-60770 Keir Fri, 27 Jul 2007 21:15:15 +0000 http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/#comment-60770 But, just to keep the conversation going, what about adults reading Harry Potter? That's who Lezard was going after. But, just to keep the conversation going, what about adults reading Harry Potter? That’s who Lezard was going after.

]]> By: mikeyb http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/comment-page-1/#comment-60769 mikeyb Fri, 27 Jul 2007 20:51:54 +0000 http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/#comment-60769 This is a stretch but the comments reminds me of the idea of liking Nabokov’s "Lolita". It’s hard to talk about the gorgeous prose from the subject getting in the way. People think you are a creep when you mention it. Criticism of Harry Potter is like hating kids reading books. This is a stretch but the comments reminds me of the idea of liking Nabokov’s “Lolita”. It’s hard to talk about the gorgeous prose from the subject getting in the way. People think you are a creep when you mention it. Criticism of Harry Potter is like hating kids reading books.

]]> By: Keir http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/comment-page-1/#comment-59726 Keir Tue, 17 Jul 2007 21:05:27 +0000 http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/#comment-59726 Reading for fun is fine with me, too. But I think those of us who write about books for a living sometimes feel affronted by the success of books whose prose displays very the qualities we've been trained to warn readers about. (Yes, we read with the author's intent and the audience's pleasure in mind, but if we start getting too relative about everything then there's no point in offering an opinion.) And as someone who reads both an awful lot of books and an awful lot of writing about books, I find a bold point of view--whatever it is--more fun to read than equivocation. For what it's worth, I'm guessing that Mr. Lezard is not a fan of youth fantasy to begin with. Reading for fun is fine with me, too. But I think those of us who write about books for a living sometimes feel affronted by the success of books whose prose displays very the qualities we’ve been trained to warn readers about. (Yes, we read with the author’s intent and the audience’s pleasure in mind, but if we start getting too relative about everything then there’s no point in offering an opinion.) And as someone who reads both an awful lot of books and an awful lot of writing about books, I find a bold point of view–whatever it is–more fun to read than equivocation. For what it’s worth, I’m guessing that Mr. Lezard is not a fan of youth fantasy to begin with.

]]> By: Lynn http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/comment-page-1/#comment-59724 Lynn Tue, 17 Jul 2007 20:37:38 +0000 http://blog.booklistonline.com/2007/07/17/harry-potter-and-the-six-consecutive-adverbs/#comment-59724 <i>"But if you have the patience to read it without noticing how plodding it is, then you are self-evidently someone on whom the possibilities of the English language are largely lost."</i> Discussions concerning literature verses popularity are often enlightening and interesting despite pompous exposition from those who feel it is the equivalent of literary cotton candy. I wonder, why can it not simply be reading the Harry Potter series is fun? “But if you have the patience to read it without noticing how plodding it is, then you are self-evidently someone on whom the possibilities of the English language are largely lost.”

Discussions concerning literature verses popularity are often enlightening and interesting despite pompous exposition from those who feel it is the equivalent of literary cotton candy.

I wonder, why can it not simply be reading the Harry Potter series is fun?

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