Rowling and Dianna Wynne Jones

[harrietmwelsch]

Original Yahoo! HPFG Header:
No: HPFGUIDX C5582
From: harrietmwelsch
Subject: Re: Rowling and Dianna Wynne Jones
Reply To: [Yahoo! #5577] Rowling and Dianna Wynne Jones
Date: 8/2/00 7:40 am  (ET)

Fantasy aficionados and people who are experts in the field of children's
literature have been comparing J.K. Rowling to Diana Wynne Jones since
the Harry Potter books first emerged, but I've never heard anyone call
them plagiarized or even deritive. They just write about the same type
of universe (and many folks think DWJ is a far better writer). They
are much more likely to get indignant that literate and literary people
don't know DWJ.

DWJ herself was asked about Harry Potter in an ACHUKA interview a year
or so ago. Here is what she said:

Q : Several people have pointed out the thematic and narrative
similarities between the Harry Potter novels and your Chrestomanci
books. Do you feel any sense of author envy when observing Rowling's
bestselling success?

A: When you say 'several people', you surely mean
several hundred. Almost everyone I know has said this. My main feeling
is a sort of exasperation that it took so long for people to discover
that this kind of book makes the best read there is.

Full text of the interview is at:
http://www.achuka.co.uk/guests/dwjsg.htm

DWJ is a prolific writer and, as the interview says, her books in her
Crestomanci series are the most like Harry Potter, if you're looking for
read-alikes. I also highly recommend "Fire and Hemlock," "Howl's Moving
Castle," and "Dogsbody." The latter features a main character named Sirius
but the similarities end there (although that hasn't stopped some people
from lawsuits).

Harriet