[HPforGrownups] Re: Will HP become classic?

[Laura Huntley]

No: HPFGUIDX 38108

I just wanted to reply to some comments on the "Harry Potter Phenomenon" and the fact that even boys like to read it (when boys generally show less enthusiasm for books for girls).

My little brother, bless his heart, is the ultimate anti-reader.  He doesn't like it, he isn't good at it, he'll do anything to avoid it.  This isn't because he has no imagination (quite the opposite, actually) or because reading isn't trendy for boys his age.  On the contrary, his problem with reading lies in a few intermingled factors, namely:

a) he has a learning disability and reading is hard and time-consuming for him. 
b) he has ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder) and *anything* that is hard and time-consuming automatically goes on his hate list.
c) he is a huge fan of TV, computer games, video games, etc.  Seriously, the kid would spend every waking moment playing Diablo II if he were allowed to.

And yet, Harry Potter got him hooked.  My mother and I have been trying to get this kid interested in reading for *years and years* with no luck, and then along comes HP and it's like MAGIC.  Pure magic.  And the kid *still* won't read anything else for pleasure.  But with HP it's different.  He actually *enjoys* it, which is incredible and beautiful.

I actually read HP at first because of him.  I figured anything that could draw him in had to be pretty special, you know?  And it was.  I think with all the nitpicking and theorizing we do around here (and not that I'm complaining) we sort of lose sight of the magic that draws you into Harry's world for the first time.  So what if Marcus Flint spends an extra year at Hogwarts or Nick "lies" about his age? It doesn't really matter in the long run, does it?   Even Tolkien had little "Flints" in his books (although he ultimately went back and fixed them) -- that never detracted from what was *special* about his books.  That intangible thing that makes a book last for generations.

As for whether Harry Potter will be a classic...who knows?  It's not the kind of thing one can really predict.  However, I think whether or not kids are still enjoying HP 100 years from now is really a moot point.  What matters is that Now, right now, Harry Potter is providing the children and adults of today with that magic.

As for those "promising teenagers" who love HP, I am proud to say I am one of them.  And although I may be a bit odd (okay, allot odd), I know countless others my age who love HP as much as I.  A case in point... even my cousin -- who is just about as self-destructive, peer-pressured, and teenagerish as you could ask for in a 17 year old --  loves the books.  HP might be "popular fiction", but it's popular for a very good reason.  Which slightly makes up for the awful sin of being mainstream. ^_~

laura


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