Interest from third book on and Rowling as author

[minerva_523]

No: HPFGUIDX 153622

>Snip
> Karen F wrote:
> My sentiments exactly----I only started reading the books just
> before book 4 came out because my students were all toting copies
> around and the series was getting a lot of attention. <snip>  I
> didn't get truly hooked until PoA, which is when elements from the
> first two books started coming back into play in a significant
> way...not to mention it packed a substantial emotional punch.
> There was no turning back after that. <snip>
>
> I also find the more intellectual offerings of the stories---the
> mythology, the use of words/language, the hidden clues, the deeper
> meaning, etc.---the stuff that goes over most of my students'
> heads---particularly stimulating. When I related some of this stuff
> to my students who are HP fans, it served to fuel their interest
> even more (not to mention giving them a little more appreciation
> for mythology and philology). If one takes the story at a strictly
> superficial level, it wouldn't have the broad appeal it has
> and could be labeled as "just another children's book".  <snip>


Now Cacaia:
I must also agree about the third book grasping my attention moreso
than the previous two. To tell the truth, I've sort of "suffered"
through the first two books, :-) but it was not until the third one
that Rowling started to bewitch me. ;-)

I agree that the series are replete with mythology and philosophy,
not to mention the very cool parallel between the Wizarding World and
our own- The series, as many scholars would say, are "loaded" with
good symbolism. I find myself talking Potterism a lot to my students,
using examples from the books, etc- I even have one kid who claims
he's a Slytherin and speaks in Parseltongue to me. ;-)

About Rowling as an author: It is my opinion that she has evolved as
a writer during the series,  being that by the third book, her use of
language and symbolism improved superbly, and her grasp upon the
Wizarding World and how it works became all the more tighter- thus
almost tangible and quite enjoyable. So, yes, I must agree- from the
third book on, that's where the series takes momentum. :-)

Cacaia