A Sense of Betrayal

[sylviampj]

No: HPFGUIDX 174459

> > Allie:
> > 
> > You'll see them called "children's books" over and over in the 
media 
> > and elsewhere, but I don't think that was actually the author's 
> > intent.  I've read in more than one place where JKR has said 
that she 
> > wasn't writing "children's" books, she just wrote the story that 
she 
> > envisioned, and it was purchased in the US by Bloomsbury, a 
children's 
> > book publisher.  There are mythology and literature references 
in the 
> > books that most children wouldn't understand.
> 
> Geoff:
> Permit me to correct you in saying that the books were first 
published 
> by Bloomsbury who are a UK publisher.
> 
> It was /after/ this that Scholastic started to produce the books 
in the 
> US.>>>>

PS was rejected by eight publishers in the UK before being accepted 
by Bloomsbury on the strength of the recommendation of the 
chairman's eight year old daughter who read the first couple of 
chapters and was entranced. In a recent interview the chairman, 
Nigel Newton said

"It was very fortunate for us, ..... We'd only just started to 
publish children's books in June 1994. And we hit it lucky." 

 I suppose that it is difficult to arrive at a definition of what 
exactly constitutes a book for children. But the fact is that PS was 
taken on by Bloomsbury as a children's book and was edited and 
marketed as such. The whole style and tone of the book suggests 
this. I don't think the literary and mythological references mean 
that it wasn't for children. Many adults wouldn't understand them 
and a proportion of well-read and intelligent children would. 

Sylvia.

>