Release Date for OOP: Speculation

[abigailnus]

No: HPFGUIDX 35467

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "roleplayer_m_uk" <shanerichmond at h...> wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at y..., "abigailnus" <abigailnus at y...> wrote:
> (and for heaven's sake, dumbing down?  All that happened was 
> > that some slang words that American kids wouldn't recognize were 
> changed - and that is the target audience, you 
> > know - kids)
> 
> Some slang words that American kids wouldn't recognise? 
> Like "philosopher", you mean?

Of course American kids would know what a philosopher is.  It's one of those Greek blokes who spent their lives in 
barrels or walked around carrying an unlit lamp looking for a good man or drank poison even though they didn't have 
to.  They might, however, not recognize that "philosopher" in the context of the phrase The Philosopher's Stone, also 
means a magician or an alchemist.  Not that any of this matters because I wasn't trying to determine whether the 
changes in the book were justified or not, I was making the point that to say that a book has been "dumbed down" 
because half a dozen words have been changed is nothing short of snobbism.  The American version is constantly 
derided as if it were "Harry Potter - The Cliff Notes Version" and I'm sorry to be the one to break it to you, but the UK 
edition isn't exactly Ulysses as far as difficulty of prose is concerned, and I'm frankly quite tired of hearing about it.

And for the record, I've read both versions (I own the UK edition and was visiting relatives in the States who had the 
US edition) and I didn't even notice the difference.  I don't really feel that the changes were justified, but I can't say 
that I care one way or another because if really *doesn't matter* - it's the same book.

Abigail