Harry Pothead...Er Potter And The Half Blood Prince -

Majic · #31 07-18-2005, 11:44 PM

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If your ten-year-old actually wants to read an 800+ page book, let them.

Encourage children to read books of length and substance? Off with your head, boy.

So, funny story. On my lovely Xanga (I'm a weak man) I posted a very reasonable intro describing how I purchased the book. The next paragraph started off with "Good job, *I'm going to be the one to spoil the book dave!*, you managed to get yourself killed by the Death Eaters." Thus far, I've recieved several rather irritated responses. Boy do I love mistreating my friends.

And for the record, I haven't bought the book yet.

Statikk HDM · #32 07-19-2005, 09:00 AM

The books are solid, true, but I've never read or seen anything that warrants this sort or rabid-dog mania. Hopefully this will get kids into harder, more adult fantasy. If people read because of the books or people got turned onto reading them, good for them. I'm sure there were a lot of young people who didn't care for reading but now are hooked because of the Potter books.
I didn't like the movies that much, mainly it was all the little titchy things they flubbed, the changing of Dumbledore because of death, and those effing annoying accents. I'm sorry, but I can't take it.

Dino · #33 07-19-2005, 09:09 AM

My idea of a "book" is a Dan Brown novel, not a slow burning long winded kiddy's story series aimed at the 10-14 year old booknerd demographic and those Discworld/Pratchett/Philip Pullman reading 20+ year olds who refuse to grow up.

Esus · #34 07-19-2005, 09:22 AM

Ugh, Dan Brown.
Sure, his stories are good ideas (if you ignore the sheer formulaic way they're all the same), but he's not a very good writer.

used:) · #35 07-19-2005, 10:26 AM

I only enjoy the Harry Potter series because I think it's good literature. But I tend to read books like ancient history and books that are reflections of our world in a different one. Like Wicked.

Dino · #36 07-19-2005, 11:04 AM

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Ugh, Dan Brown.
Sure, his stories are good ideas (if you ignore the sheer formulaic way they're all the same), but he's not a very good writer.

He's a darn sight better than J K Rowling. And to be honest I like the formula he uses, because it follows the basic rules of a decent book, and some more advanced rules of the English language and plot writing.

I don't really think you're qualified to make critique of a world acclaimed author of several best sellers though to be honest. If you're saying that Dan Brown isn't a good writer in an attempt to pimp the Harry Potter books then that just gives you even less credibility as a critic. I'd rather hear negative criticism of Dan Brown from someone who knows what he is actually talking about rather than someone who has simply noticed that all his books follow a similar style.

Esus · #37 07-19-2005, 12:09 PM

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I don't really think you're qualified to make critique of a world acclaimed author of several best sellers though to be honest.

And I don't think you're qualified to critique J K Rowling, a world acclaimed author. Yeah, I'm basing this on nothing, like you just did.

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If you're saying that Dan Brown isn't a good writer in an attempt to pimp the Harry Potter books then that just gives you even less credibility as a critic.

Bloody good job I'm not, then!

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I'd rather hear negative criticism of Dan Brown from someone who knows what he is actually talking about rather than someone who has simply noticed that all his books follow a similar style.

I do know what I'm talking about, there is a lot I don't like about the way Dan Brown writes. Unfortunately, the formulaic and similar plots in each of his novels is what I can currently remember best. If I re-read one within the next few days, I could elaborate more.

MojoMan220 · #38 07-19-2005, 06:49 PM

I'll grab the dueling gloves...

Statikk HDM · #39 07-19-2005, 07:08 PM

Dan Brown is a hack, but at least he's an entertaining one. Unlike Tom Clancy, whose hackery is mind****ingly horrendous.

Dino · #40 07-19-2005, 08:07 PM

When will people learn that I'm so much less likely to actually pay any attention to their opinion when they refuse or simply don't bother to back things up/elaborate?

Look, you think that Dan Brown is a bad writer then fine, but if you expect me to accept your opinion as valid you better be able to suggest one superior author, and be able to back up or elaborate on anything you say. If you just don't like his style then fine, I don't have a problem with that... but you need to understand here you're actually saying that his style is bad, not that you don't like it out of sheer preference. And you can't even back that up by elaborating. Why should I even give a flying screw? Dude don't pester me with your stupid opinion if you've not really got anything of any consequence to say about it.

Joshy · #41 07-19-2005, 11:35 PM

Why only like Dan Brown or J K Rowling, i personally like both author. Try letting down your guard and try enjoying their novels.

CheeseOfGlory · #42 07-20-2005, 12:35 AM

Oh man, finally finished reading the book. Pretty decent, though I think it needed more detail about his everyday life and a sense of time passing instead of jumping from one scene to another. (and everything was kind of predictable)

Rowling took a pretty big risk with the ending, but I doubt she'll be able to fit everything that needs to happen in the next book. Plus...what will happen after this...septilogy finally ends?

Leto · #43 07-20-2005, 12:48 AM

Hopefully nothing. Probably spawn a spin-off, though, due to its popularity.

Esus · #44 07-20-2005, 06:35 AM

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If you just don't like his style then fine, I don't have a problem with that... but you need to understand here you're actually saying that his style is bad, not that you don't like it out of sheer preference. And you can't even back that up by elaborating.

When I say 'This person is bad', it tends to mean, to me, that I'm saying: 'In my opinion, this person is bad.'
His style is bad = I don't like his style out of sheer preference.
Of course it's sheer preference. There isn't much that isn't.

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Why should I even give a flying screw?

Uhh... perhaps you shouldn't. I dunno. I can still write on a public forum that Dan Brown is a bad writer.

One superior author?
J K Rowling is a superior author, and I don't think she's that great.
Other superior authors that come to mind include J R R Tolkien, Philip Pullman, Ian McEwan, George Orwell, Pat Barker, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Valerio Massimo Manfredi, Louise Welsh....
There are many more authors I consider better than Dan Brown. Is simply a matter of preference of style - probably, yes.

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When will people learn that I'm so much less likely to actually pay any attention to their opinion when they refuse or simply don't bother to back things up/elaborate?

Oooooh, I could say the same thing. But I won't.

Statikk HDM · #45 07-20-2005, 07:30 AM

Brown, to me, is crippled by his shitty word choices and historical inaccuracies, not to mention the colossal cop-out that was the ending to The Da Vinci Code. He's also far overrated, with his books being mega sellers and highly acclaimed even by better writers in the same genre. I also predict that the planned movies with Tom Hanks will be train wrecks, but that won't stop people from taking up the movie room watching the stupid bullshit and making me feel small for not spending 10 dollars and 2 hours of my life seeing it in theaters.

used:) · #46 07-20-2005, 09:43 AM

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Oh man, finally finished reading the book. Pretty decent, though I think it needed more detail about his everyday life and a sense of time passing instead of jumping from one scene to another. (and everything was kind of predictable)

Rowling took a pretty big risk with the ending, but I doubt she'll be able to fit everything that needs to happen in the next book. Plus...what will happen after this...septilogy finally ends?

Man, I'm only on like chapter four! Lol

^^

Blah blah blah blah blah blah, yap yap yap yap. God, some of you are so damn whiny! And for future reference, I would highly recomend Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. It's a lot more serious than its title makes it sound. And it's definatley not a children's book. Lol

Dark Oddworld · #47 07-20-2005, 08:40 PM

If you read Harry Potter than you should read Foundations Of Magic: Techniques & Spells That Work I thought it was good but of course its fake

Al the Vykker · #48 07-21-2005, 02:48 PM

Apparently the last chapter of book 7 Rowling said would be an Epilogue to tell you what happens to the survivors an Epilogue of sorts. The only spin-off she said she'd consider would be like a book with biographies of the main characters- not so important characters as well. I doubt she'll do a Lucas because enough of the backstory is explained already in scenes such as the pensieve ones, etc.

Dark Oddworld · #49 07-21-2005, 11:38 PM

Spoiler alert!

What Snape Got DADA instead of potions!!!!!

Yep I'm only that far....

I'm going to go kill J.K. now! They just got away from snape and look what happens!

Dino · #50 07-22-2005, 12:19 AM

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One superior author?
J K Rowling is a superior author, and I don't think she's that great.
Other superior authors that come to mind include J R R Tolkien, Philip Pullman, Ian McEwan, George Orwell, Pat Barker, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Valerio Massimo Manfredi, Louise Welsh....

You listed serveral authors that I really despise, so I guess we're just polar opposites in terms of our taste in literature.

used:) · #51 07-22-2005, 05:39 AM

Different poles on a magnet. I kind of like Madeline Lengall's books.

Leeum · #52 07-26-2005, 03:00 AM

Everyone to their own I suppose, I got bored after the 4th book. I know what happens in the new one anyway

Teal · #53 07-26-2005, 02:29 PM

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I didn't like the movies that much, mainly it was all the little titchy things they flubbed, the changing of Dumbledore because of death, and those effing annoying accents.

*laughs* Sorry, that just struck me as strangely funny; sounds like you mean they should have strung the dead actor up like a mannequin and had him continue "acting", while he decomposed and bits fell off etc...

How DARE he die halfway through! I mean, how UNFAIR can a person be?! (I know what you meant, BTW, the mental image just amused me.

)

For the record, I have never read any Harry Potter, and don't really intend to, and the over-commercialisation of it irritates me, but if it gets kids to read then it's got to be a good thing, I suppose, so... yeah. Whee.

Dino · #54 07-26-2005, 03:31 PM

I swear if someone does the "harry pothead" thing again I'll go caveman on them. Worst pisstake ever.

Esus · #55 07-27-2005, 11:21 AM

By far......

LoboDiabloLoneWolf · #56 08-12-2005, 04:56 AM

DIE HP MOVIES! AARRRRRG!

They so slaughtered the books...sigh... I mean they cut out loads of little things that made it make sense. I mean in the third movie, did it tell you who Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs were? And how they were connected to Harry? I DON'T THINK SO! And Peeves, why oh why did they leave out Peeves? He's just hilarious and really annoying, but a good character... That makes me so annoyed... GRRR. And it was badly planned! They changed the cast plus the violent tree in the second film moved in the third one! And Hagrid's house moved! Where the heck did that mountain and the standing stones come from!? How'd they explain screw-ups like that!?

*points and laughs at pitful attempt at Harry Potter movies*

And no, I'm not a a Harry Potter fanatic, I just hate badly made movies and especially a really bad book to movie adaption, I mean they could have done a half decent job, like The Lord Of The Rings was pretty good. But I'm Christian so we don't all think the books are 'evil, eeeeeeeevil!' and I wouldn't burn a book to begin with.

Plus, I like to read. Point Blank. So I'll try anything at least once and to begin with I didn't want to read the HPs because they were over popular - thought it was kinda dorky actually - but then I read the third book because I was bored and I grew to like them. It ain't the best series I've ever read but it's not the worst either.

Anyway, rant over, you can ignore me now.

Dark Oddworld · #57 08-18-2005, 04:14 PM

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DIE HP MOVIES! AARRRRRG!

They so slaughtered the books...sigh... I mean they cut out loads of little things that made it make sense. I mean in the third movie, did it tell you who Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs were? And how they were connected to Harry? I DON'T THINK SO! And Peeves, why oh why did they leave out Peeves? He's just hilarious and really annoying, but a good character... That makes me so annoyed... GRRR. And it was badly planned! They changed the cast plus the violent tree in the second film moved in the third one! And Hagrid's house moved! Where the heck did that mountain and the standing stones come from!? How'd they explain screw-ups like that!?

*points and laughs at pitful attempt at Harry Potter movies*

And no, I'm not a a Harry Potter fanatic, I just hate badly made movies and especially a really bad book to movie adaption, I mean they could have done a half decent job, like The Lord Of The Rings was pretty good. But I'm Christian so we don't all think the books are 'evil, eeeeeeeevil!' and I wouldn't burn a book to begin with.

Plus, I like to read. Point Blank. So I'll try anything at least once and to begin with I didn't want to read the HPs because they were over popular - thought it was kinda dorky actually - but then I read the third book because I was bored and I grew to like them. It ain't the best series I've ever read but it's not the worst either.

Anyway, rant over, you can ignore me now.

Yea I'm angry about Peeves too. I thought he would have a role in the movies .

Kimon · #58 08-18-2005, 05:36 PM

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But I'm Christian so we don't all think the books are 'evil, eeeeeeeevil!' and I wouldn't burn a book to begin with.

I, too, am a Christian. That is where out similarities end. I hate books with a passion. In fact, I take all my family's books down to a shooting range, nail them to the targets, and shoot away. I love to see them explode into papery fluffs.

So far, the most satisfying explosions have come from Moby Dick by Charles Dickens, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkein, Ulysses by James Joyce, Animal Farm by George Orwell, and Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut. Oh, how I laughed when I saw the pages tear. Hahahahahahahahaha!

...

My stance on the Harry Potter movies: OK. They were merely alright movies. Nothing like the books, but I was super excited when I went to see the first one, and I didn't get dissapointed, so something must have been done right.

used:) · #59 08-18-2005, 06:15 PM

Animal Farm r0x0rz. How could yinz do soemthing like that? Booooo!

My maoin disagreement with the movies is how they've left out the best things in them. In the first one, it was the Night Duel, the second one was the full exploration of that evil shop. The third I don't have any real problems with except the choice of actors. Oh, and Chris Columbus's goody two shoes nicety nice version of the first two. Bleah!

Dino · #60 08-18-2005, 08:03 PM

I was disappointed to say the least when I saw that Mark Williams, a respected oldskool British comedian, had taken up a role in an HP film. Especially considering he plays Ron's Dad.

Ron is sexy and all this, but he's so annoying.