Letters to the Editor
-
I can't believe this is really the end
Thanks for finally writing an article whose sole purpose does not appear to gloat about having inside informationt on the last "Harry" book.
I do take exception to the authors cited who believe that J.K. Rowling has created an "idealized" boarding school world. Rather than being celebrated for his bravery and trials, Harry has been constantly ostracized and harassed by other students and even teachers. Yes, he does have strong allies, but also many detractors. What he goes through is not just the "typical" coming of age pranks by peers, but something deeper.
Unlike an American school, none of the staff seem overly concerned with bolstering their charges' self-esteem. Rather the "stiff upper lip" mentality is very much present. I'm willing to bet that it is partly the less than plesant treatment Harry received at Hogwarts that is as much a catalyst for his anger as his upbringing with the Dursleys. By book seven, he has zero patience for adults who try to sugarcoat the truth. Perhaps if he had been given more positive adult guidance at Hogwarts, Harry would be more "well-adjusted." But then I'm an American reader.
-
I appreciate the Editor's Note
But can someone explain to me the desperate need to so many media outlets to "discuss plot developments" in "reviews" before the book is even out? Even if we want to avoid spoilers, it's almost impossible the way they fly around print and digital media anymore. All you do is contribute to ruining an enjoyable experience by participating in this breathless "let's talk about it before anyone can actually READ it" farce.
I don't even look for this stuff, but I haven't experienced a plot twist in a major book or movie in 30 years, starting with learning that Darth Vader was Luke's father while standing in line to see Empire Strikes Back the day the movie opened, all the way up through learning Dumbledore died through the headline of an online news story purporting to discuss the impact of his death on young readers. The day before the book came out.
-
Thank you!
Haven't read the article (yet), haven't read the letters.
But I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the warning you put on this article. Thank you for preserving my experience and that of anyone else who wants to discover the book on their own. You can only read a book for the first time once.
-
A Howler - or two.
What, this couldn't have waited until Sunday? Saturday at the earliest? It had to be Friday morning's lead? Yes, there's an editor's note telling people "if you don't want to know, don't read it!" but more importantly - if you don't want to ruin things by posting a premature review of a book millions have waited to read unspoiled - don't post the article until it's time. Way screw it up, Salon.
-
I agree...
...with Aygee. Spoiler tags or not, why couldn't this have waited until Sunday?
So you broke the embargo, Ms. Miller, and you're a very fast reader. Good for you.
-
Spoilers?
In a review, a spoiler is usually a hint. I don't mind a hint - I don't have time to read book 7 tomorrow anyway - but it appears that you flat-out told us the ending! That is not what reviews (of books, or movies) do, ever, pre-publication or not.
-
spoiler alert
I didn't read the story because of the spoiler alert, but if I could make one observation:
People interested in a story like this are probably fans and readers of the series. Why print a story with spoilers before the book is even released. If I wanted this kind of above-it-all, poseur sort of attitude, I'd still be reading Slate.
I can only assume this is a consequence of virtual exposure to the odiously self-satisfied Paglia.
You should take this article down
-
re: spoilers
I don't mind the spoilers. I don't trust Rowling after some of the gaffs she's made (for example, discovering that Mad-Eye was really someone you had never met after you got to like him), and the first thing I was planning to do when I bought the book was flip to the end and reassure myself that she hadn't blown this one too.
Besides, some twat commenter on an unrelated youtube video already spoilered everything for me. Why do people feel the urge to do things like that?
-
50 Points from Salon
I'm horribly disappointed in Salon and its editors. Just because certain pompous publications who shall remain nameless (New York Times and Baltimore Sun) felt the need to prove they had early copies of the book for their reviewers by running alleged reviews early, does not mean Salon is excused for follow suit. If the the NYT supported the war lies of the Bush Administration (Oh, wait! They did.), does that mean Salon would support the lies also?
This so-called review should be pulled until Sunday at the earliest, Monday preferably. We all know your reviewer gets the books ahead of us mere paying customers and it's not like this article will stop or persuade anyone from buying the book. It's mere childishness on the part Salon wanting to copy the "popular kids". Please, Salon, grow up!
-
Grow up, gentle readers.
If you're the type to call Rowling "Jo," and you see an article with the words "Harry," "Potter," and "review" in the first couple paragraphs, stay away, a'ight? I've read all six, I'm buying #7 the first day out, and I'm still interested in a critical take, even before the book comes out. And for those who couldn't be arsed to turn a single Potter page, it's still nice to watch the imminent cultural frenzy with a bit of background in the back of your mind. No surprise from Rowling - sorry, Jo - has yet taken my breath away. Let me have the tease before the real fun begins.
-
A good review, especially for a parent that has yet to really read the books
All complaints about spoilers, snobbishness and anything else the fans heap upon this review reflect poorly upon the fans, reveal an almost hysteric desire to shout down anybody who complains about it. It's the mentality of a person who suspects that they live in a house of cards, and thus complain bitterly about each gust of wind.
I am, however more likely to give this book a shot, though, since I don't care about the "suspense" and was put off of reading Ms. Rowling's books due to the clunky prose earlier. It seems that she has matured enough for me to give it a shot when I have finished the latest Jasper Fforde, provided that Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett or William Gibson doesn't bring out a new novel in the meantime.
From the review's description, though, it sounds as is seeing her works turned into screenplays has influenced her writing, making chase scenes for the films and also hard-to-film epilogues that feed the fan base (and also try to head off any fan fiction attempts).
I do see one problem, though. The way she ended the epic shows a desire on her part to see the stories as timeless, but makes it harder for me to swallow. When did Harry attend Hogwarts, after all? Jumping that far into the future means that the stories could have taken place in the Eighties, with the final battle coinciding with the fall of Communism, but takes away the contemporary feel the kids love. That does ruin the Suspension of Disbelief for me, but to be quite honest I never could quite accept her world as one that might exist.