Has Harry Potter cast a curse?
Rebutting the conventional wisdom that the Harry Potter phenomenon is good for reading, writing and publishing in general, Washington Post book editor Ron Charles has written a provocative essay entitled "Harry Potter and the Death of Reading." In it, he cites a few facts to buttress his case that millions of people reading the same book does not quite portend a renaissance for the written word:
Also: "Like the basilisk that terrorized students at Hogwarts in Book II, 'Harry Potter' and a few other much-hyped books devour everyone's attention, leaving most readers paralyzed in praise, apparently incapable of reading much else."
I don't know. Valid points, I suppose. But if the problem is that not enough people are reading books, it seems churlish to bemoan those who still do -- whatever the quality of the volume in question, or its mass-market appeal.
- More than half the adults in this country won't pick up a novel this year, according to the National Endowment for the Arts.
- The same data point to a dramatic and accelerating decline in the number of young people reading fiction.
- In 1994, over 70 percent of total fiction sales were accounted for by a mere five authors.
Also: "Like the basilisk that terrorized students at Hogwarts in Book II, 'Harry Potter' and a few other much-hyped books devour everyone's attention, leaving most readers paralyzed in praise, apparently incapable of reading much else."
I don't know. Valid points, I suppose. But if the problem is that not enough people are reading books, it seems churlish to bemoan those who still do -- whatever the quality of the volume in question, or its mass-market appeal.
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