The Wood Beyond The World Forum Age & Maturity of the writ..

Harry Potter was just hitting it big when I started working at Barnes & Noble, 8+ years ago, and my oldest children were just hitting the reluctant solo reader stage, so I had to read the books, for professional and domestic reasons. I was absolutely floored by Rowling's powers of invention in the details of history and social structure of her wizarding culture -- not so much by the writing as writing, though. I've felt a bit sorry for her, with all the celebrity and pressure, but hey, who am I to feel sorry for someone making that much money?

And we'll be there at the midnight release party -- don't know if it'll be at B&N or some other bookstore -- I may not continue to work for the corporate giant after we move -- I have mixed feelings about that -- hate to lose my benefits, but really hankering for a different kind of environment. Not the worst retail job I ever had, but . . . . Albuquerque has thriving, independently owned booksellers, and I may give them a shot.

But enough about me. I think Potter appeals to adults who want to enjoy the pleasures of childhood, or who never grew up, perhaps -- or missed a part of childhood. I love good children's books of all kinds -- I read what my kids read, and re-read old favorites regularly. Some of the best storytelling of all time has been performed specifically for children. There's a lot to be learned about storytelling for grownups from good kids lit.

I recommend in that department: Cornelia Funke, Joan Aiken, Terry Pratchett, Jonathan Stroud -- enough for now.

Anyone else have good children's books to recommend?

I like the Harry Potter series because it really is quite remarkable. Not just some ordinary fantasy. She really had a plan when writing it and every event and piece of dialogue was tied in quite nicely with a pretty intricate plot. I also like how she made the subject matter a bit darker and more sinister with each installment; the protagonists were getting older and more experienced, and being drawn further into the darkness out of their childhood innocence. Lots of good stuff, there.

Oh yeah, I'll say it again...The Dark is Rising (by Susan Cooper) is a really good series of fantasy for children. It has a very distinct ambience about it, one of a sort of quiet, foreboding 'otherness'. They still chill me to the bone when I read them sometimes, actually more now that I'm older than when I read it as a child.