I'm not going to begin to say JKR deserves her massive income, because I doubt any single writer in the world at any time deserves that much money for a single series. That's just a consequence of capitalism. Nor am I going to say that the HP books' merit alone warrants its popularity.
But, I do think that there tend to be reasons that certain books become popular, and at least one of them has to stem from something inherent to the book itself.
I liked Dahl as a child, but thinking back on it, his style was rather like goat milk. He had a quirkiness to his writing that I suppose one could find either incredibly charming or too weird to really stomach -- especially if you've been growing up less "weird-mindedly". Dahl is incredibly unique and I think the fact that he's done well shows that children more often than not appreciate him. His goat milk flavor is not, however, something I'd attempt to market on the scale of Harry Potter. It may very well be considered a plus that Harry Potter stays within blander boundaries, because I think that makes it more potentially accessible. Not requiring the reader to be familiar with existing literature -- that, too, makes it more accessible.
Not to say that Harry Potter offers special. I think there's a lot about its particular premise that makes it more relatable for this generation. (Which, uh, would be mine I guess.) It builds the magic around a world that a child essentially already experiences. It hides Diagon Alley in the streets of a mundane city, and the magical train in the walls of a normal train station. It says kids get sent a magic letter on their 11th birthday (and their parents get a visit if no one knows any better) and then they get to go to magic school where they don't have to learn crappy subjects like math.
Cut to Hogwarts, and it's still an embellishment upon an existence kids essentially know. Harry Potter is its own High School AU. I think fandom's demonstrated the appeal of that one by its immeasurable archives of it.
My point is, until the final book, the striking thing about Harry Potter is that it's about a world that is parallel in more than one sense to ours. I think that sets it far apart from most books about magic, in which the magical hijinks cause things to diverge (even temporarily) from the routine of normal life.
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Date: 2011-12-28 04:28 pm (UTC)But, I do think that there tend to be reasons that certain books become popular, and at least one of them has to stem from something inherent to the book itself.
I liked Dahl as a child, but thinking back on it, his style was rather like goat milk. He had a quirkiness to his writing that I suppose one could find either incredibly charming or too weird to really stomach -- especially if you've been growing up less "weird-mindedly". Dahl is incredibly unique and I think the fact that he's done well shows that children more often than not appreciate him. His goat milk flavor is not, however, something I'd attempt to market on the scale of Harry Potter. It may very well be considered a plus that Harry Potter stays within blander boundaries, because I think that makes it more potentially accessible. Not requiring the reader to be familiar with existing literature -- that, too, makes it more accessible.
Not to say that Harry Potter offers special. I think there's a lot about its particular premise that makes it more relatable for this generation. (Which, uh, would be mine I guess.) It builds the magic around a world that a child essentially already experiences. It hides Diagon Alley in the streets of a mundane city, and the magical train in the walls of a normal train station. It says kids get sent a magic letter on their 11th birthday (and their parents get a visit if no one knows any better) and then they get to go to magic school where they don't have to learn crappy subjects like math.
Cut to Hogwarts, and it's still an embellishment upon an existence kids essentially know. Harry Potter is its own High School AU. I think fandom's demonstrated the appeal of that one by its immeasurable archives of it.
My point is, until the final book, the striking thing about Harry Potter is that it's about a world that is parallel in more than one sense to ours. I think that sets it far apart from most books about magic, in which the magical hijinks cause things to diverge (even temporarily) from the routine of normal life.