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the end of the world
14 Jul 2007 09:39 pmas they know it, for Harry Potter fans...............................
Ick.
WTH is this:
She said older readers would find plenty to entertain them in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, while younger readers might enjoy Emily Rodda's Deltora Quest series.
She said Garth Nix (Keys to the Kingdom) fitted the bill for older readers, while Isobelle Carmody (The Obernewtyn Chronicles) was another good choice for young readers who enjoy fantasy.
While I haven't read Deltora Quest or Keys to the Kingdom (which looks interesting), being well past library-going age when they came out (*cough* excuse for can't be bothered) .......................
And while I do recommend Pullman and Carmody......................
But Carmody for young readers?!? While I admit I read Obernewtyn in year 8, which might be "young", but that was also the age I read Elizabeth Moon's utterly un-child-safe The Deeds of Paksenarrion series (and which scarred me for life...)
Carmody's are never books I'd recommend for someone coming off Harry Potter. Likewise with Pullman's. While the merging of a magical world with ours might seem similar to HP, Pullman's world is much more humourless, much less affectionate, and is cold and intellectual and gloomy like the Northern Lights of its namesake.
Similarly, Carmody's world is extremely dark compared to Rowling's. While both have a huge cast of well-developed characters (although Carmody wins out on any day), Carmody's books are simply not on the same scope as Harry's. It's a "save-the-world" story where death and high stakes are recognised in the very first book. The death toll is much higher than HP, and imparts the same sense of helplessness one feels in real life.
Even Jik's death, something so senseless and accidental, something so swift and unexpected...something so like Sirius' death, one might say, the after effects are described with an emotional poignancy that HP has never managed to reach.
Ultimately, HP isn't really fantasy, and that might be exactly where its mass appeal lies. I've yet to meet any fantasy fan who thinks HP is the best thing since pasteurised milk =P
(O.T.: Wow, I totally didn't know Elizabeth Moon was a qualified paramedic.)
Ick.
WTH is this:
She said older readers would find plenty to entertain them in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, while younger readers might enjoy Emily Rodda's Deltora Quest series.
She said Garth Nix (Keys to the Kingdom) fitted the bill for older readers, while Isobelle Carmody (The Obernewtyn Chronicles) was another good choice for young readers who enjoy fantasy.
While I haven't read Deltora Quest or Keys to the Kingdom (which looks interesting), being well past library-going age when they came out (*cough* excuse for can't be bothered) .......................
And while I do recommend Pullman and Carmody......................
But Carmody for young readers?!? While I admit I read Obernewtyn in year 8, which might be "young", but that was also the age I read Elizabeth Moon's utterly un-child-safe The Deeds of Paksenarrion series (and which scarred me for life...)
Carmody's are never books I'd recommend for someone coming off Harry Potter. Likewise with Pullman's. While the merging of a magical world with ours might seem similar to HP, Pullman's world is much more humourless, much less affectionate, and is cold and intellectual and gloomy like the Northern Lights of its namesake.
Similarly, Carmody's world is extremely dark compared to Rowling's. While both have a huge cast of well-developed characters (although Carmody wins out on any day), Carmody's books are simply not on the same scope as Harry's. It's a "save-the-world" story where death and high stakes are recognised in the very first book. The death toll is much higher than HP, and imparts the same sense of helplessness one feels in real life.
Even Jik's death, something so senseless and accidental, something so swift and unexpected...something so like Sirius' death, one might say, the after effects are described with an emotional poignancy that HP has never managed to reach.
Ultimately, HP isn't really fantasy, and that might be exactly where its mass appeal lies. I've yet to meet any fantasy fan who thinks HP is the best thing since pasteurised milk =P
(O.T.: Wow, I totally didn't know Elizabeth Moon was a qualified paramedic.)
