Anything that makes people read more makes me happy. Therefore, the Harry Potter phenomenon makes me happy. People are really, really excited! About a book! How fucking cool is that?
But man, I wish people would go nuts over a better book.
Oh yes, that’s right. I think Harry Potter is vastly overrated. The premise is all right, but based on what I read (all of the first book, half of the second) the writing was pedestrian at best, boring at worst, and rife with cliches. Someone I knew wrote this very interesting post about the magic system and pinpointed something else that was bothering me:
Anyway, maybe I’m being picky, but [Candy] is certainly right, the writing is nothing to write home about. But most of all the MAGIC is rather silly.
I’m not even quite sure what I mean by that – but the magic seems kind of spoofy and farcical in nature like – oh, I’m going to go take Magic Charms 101. And then Hagrid is going to move the plot along by doing something stupid. And then I’m going to fly around on a magic broom. And wear an invisibility cloak. Forgive me if I didn’t get past the first book.
And then there’s the division of the kids into 4 types of people: the heroes, the villains, the clumsy idiots, and the smartypants. That irks to no end.
I feel like you can tell a lot about a book or author by the way they use magic. The magic in worlds like Ursula LeGuin’s Earthsea (she should be added to the list by the way) or Tolkien’s Middle Earth is much more part of the fabric of the world, much more natural. C.S. Lewis’ magic is based in Christianity – I think. Diane Duane’s books are much more comparable to Rowling’s world, because they are also set in the “real” world, and the magic there is based on the idea that wizards are fighting against the forces of entropy. And Rowling’s magic is…like I said… silly.
Here are some magical children’s books that I’ve read and loved—books that, in my opinion, are Better than Potter:
- The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White (I made my husband read this a couple of years ago and he e-mailed me at work, essentially saying “Holy shit! Best. Book. Evar.”)
- Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
- Any of the books in the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
- Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
- The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
- The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
- Bedknob and Broomstick by Mary Norton
- Five Children and It, The Phoenix and the Carpet and The Story of the Amulet by E. Nesbit (really, ANYTHING by E. Nesbit is brilliant)
- The Darkangel trilogy by Meredith Ann Pierce (The Darkangel, A Gathering of Gargoyles and The Pearl of the Soul of the World
- Redwall by Brian Jacques (the first book is astonishingly good, but the rest of the series is crrrrrap)
- Anything from the Wizard of Oz series by L. Frank Baum.
- The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a series that I think is somewhat overrated—a lot of the dialogue and ALL of the poetry/songs have literally made me gag, they’re so stilted and awful, though I admit nobody can beat Tolkien when it comes to world-building, and I acknowledge that Tolkien is largely responsible for creating the modern fantasy genre as we know it)
- Anything by Philip Pullman—I have the His Dark Materials trilogy in my TBR stacks, and I’ve heard many, many good things about them, and unlike Harry Potter, I have no doubt that these books will live up to their hype
Feel free to fire away in the comments and tell me what a shitful freak I am. Or if, like me, you’re a fellow children’s book/YA novel reader who just is not impressed with Harry Potter, feel free to speak up in solidarity. Feel free to recommend your favorite children’s books, too—yes, even if they’re Harry Potter novels.
It’s mind candy. It amuses me. That’s pretty much it.
Though if they had been a real Hogwarts when I was a kid, I would have been SO there.
One author not mentioned- and this is adult as well as juvenile, is Terry Pratchett. The Wee Free Men, Hat Full of Stars, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, Johnny and the Bomb, etc. et al.
Any book featuring the Nac Mac Feegle (tiny blue men in kilts whose main tenants are “drinkin… fightin… and more drinkin!”)is a classic in my household. It’s become a tradition to read the Wee Free Men every year at Christmas time.
Beautifully written, evocative, and magical. The main character in my favorite series is a girl named Tiffany Aching. She’s a witch in training and a maestro at making cheese.
rats, people mentioned all my favorites: Pratchett, E. Nesbit, Edward Eager, Susan Cooper. If you can get The Dark Is Rising in audio, it’s fantastic.
but I disliked the Pullman books. The first two were excellent, but I thought the ending of the last one was telegraphed and it all fell flat. I was trying to figure out how he was going to get out of the bind he’d plotted himself into, and sure enough he didn’t. bleah. To use a trite phrase, he sold his ending for a plot of message.
Don’t forget to include the Abhorsen series by Garth Nix.
The main character in the second book is a Librarian! 🙂
As a teacher, I’ve seen students who hate to read pick up Harry Potter and love the books. That right there is magical.
Having read the whole series, let me assure those who stopped after ten pages of the first book that these pages, in fact, are not indicative of everything Rowling has ever written. (The characters grow more complex as Harry gains the maturity to start seeing the world in shades of gray.)
J.K. Rowling does have a meandering style, and she sure needed an editor for book 4… but this latest book has beautiful pacing. Her style also reminds me a lot of Dickens, actually. Rather heavyhanded, humorous, fun, but always with an undercurrent of something darker.
I am not saying we should stick her in a classical canon right this minute, or that we ever should, but I also hesitate to “pan” her work because of all the hype. After all, Shakespeare’s contemporaries called him an ignorant boob because he enjoyed popularity with the masses…
… and I enjoy reading romance novels. It would be ridiculous and hypocritical for me to judge something as “too popular” when I love love LOVE popular fiction.
Others have already recommended my favourite YA fantasists (Diana Wynne Jones, Garth Nix, Margaret Mahy). So I’ll restrict myself to adding a few more YA titles that really appeal to kids here who’ve read all the Harry Potter books and are looking for something new at my library.
Cornelia Funke, The Thief Lord, Inkheart, etc
Marcus Sedgwick, The Book of Dead Days
Philip Reeve, Mortal Engines, Predator’s Gold
[These all seem to be very good for attracting/keeping boy readers, like the HP series.]
Becca, I love you, you’re the first person ever I’ve heard say that. The first two Pullman books are fantastic, and then he completely wimps out on the third – and if you’re going to do that – why bother? But you never hear a bad word said about the series.
[And has anyone else ever wondered why Rowling gets carpeted for irreligiousity, and Pullman gets a bye?]
I’m with you on everything else – loved Susan Cooper, Edward Eager, E.Nesbit and Pratchett, except for his children’s books. [Though I still read those.]
As for the Potter books, I just love them. When I read the first, I felt like I was rereading a book that I’d loved as a child, but entirely forgotten.
I’m late to the party as usual, but let me say that Rowlings is a good example of someone who can tell a decent story, but who doesn’t write well at all. Lots of folks out there like that.
People want a GOOD STORY and they are willing to put up with a lot of crap to get one.
I’m late too, Sara, and totally with you. I don’t think the HP books are God’s gift to literature, but they are a huge gift to the art of storytelling. Ya know – catchy tunes don’t have to be complex to be good. They just have to be catchy. And it’s fun to sing along.
Me? I was sucked into them from the beginning because—well it was like: “Magic wands! Photos that wave back at me! I wanna be the One Who Lived and the mean grown-ups can’t STAND it and for some mysterious reason I am better or stronger or somehow more than everybody in the world and and and and I WANT AN OWL!”
(Note that I don’t pretend to be all that mature, so there ya go.)
That’s it! Damn Beth, you’re so smart. Harry Potter as a catchy tune. Something with a quick beat. Not quite Walking on Sunshine (or does that show how really really old I am?)
I want an owl too and I wouldn’t even mind a howler.
I’ve enjoyed reading the recommendations, and I would add Patricia McKillip. I’ve enjoyed several of her books, and The Book of Atrix Wolfe is quite memorable.
I enjoy Harry Potter, but I haven’t read (or bought) book 6 yet. And after book 5, I agree that a good editor would be helpful.
“I’m late to the party as usual, but let me say that Rowlings is a good example of someone who can tell a decent story, but who doesn’t write well at all.”
I’d say the huge majority of massively bestselling novelists fall into that category. John Grisham, Jackie Collins, Jude Deveraux, Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, Olivia Goldsmith—their books usually contain a ripping good yarn, but man, stylistically speaking, they’re Hiroshima (or D-Day, or in the case of a couple of these, sleeping sickness; take your pick).
“Harry Potter as a catchy tune. Something with a quick beat. Not quite Walking on Sunshine (or does that show how really really old I am?)”
Hee hee. The first comparisons that sprang to my mind were songs like “Everybody Dance Now” or the whole Spice Girls catalog. But comparing Harry Potter to the Spice Girls is unkind indeed to J.K. Rowling, since I don’t think the books are THAT bad.
Becca: I completely agree about Pullman. I felt cheated at the end of that series.
I like the HP books, and I went to see the movies in the theater. (All alone. My boyfriend refused to go, it wasn’t manly enough for him – and even worse, it’s pop culure.) But I have my issues with the books, too. I’m in it for the escapism and jollies.
Speaking of which: I recently re-read Alice in Wonderland. I realize it was unique at the time, but right now, in 2006, I think it seriously sucks.
Personally I love the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede.
Gonna second the motion on Francesca Lia Block – esp. the Weetzie Bat books.
Also, I don’t think anyone’s mentioned Lloyd Alexander – “Chronicles of Prydain”, etc.? Also the series with “The Kestrel”. And he had a sort-of female Indiana Jones series, but I was getting a bit old for it when it came out.
Personally, I’m a fan of Rowling. But whatever.
Y’all HAVE to pick up Libba Bray’s first two books. They’re almost YA, but dark. Victorian girl with visions and control of magic… and a super-hot Indian guy. Delish.
Patricia C. Wrede. Diane Duane- mostly because I like the characters, and the magic/world makes sense. Madeleine L’engle. Trixie Belden. Charlotte Macleod’s We dare not go a’huntin’. Anne of Green Gables and Emily of New Moon. Anything by Terry Pratchett. Some books by Tamora Pierce, but not all. Whoever wrote Matilda! Definitely the Borrowers and Oz. Robin Mckinley- Spindle’s End was my favorite. Pride and prejudice (not really YA, but I read it for the first time in 6th grade). Quite a few others- one series which I can’t remember the name, but one title was “super weasel”- it’s about a kid who decides to do good deeds, but gets into huge amounts of trouble (he dubs his sister “the pest” if that sounds familiar to anyone). CJ cherryh’s Finity’s End.
Cheaper by the dozen and Belles on their toes.
Never really liked Pullman. HP sucks me in with the cute details (photos, owls, etc.) but I detest JK’s writing abilities.
Wow….I’m probably leaving quite a bit out. Oh, well…
To be fair, how could the Harry Potter books NOT be overrated? Unless they were the greatest books in the history of the world, second only to Shakespeare (which aren’t really books), they HAVE to be overrated, because of their immense popularity.
That being said, I do think they’re pretty good. Nothing genius, or revolutionary; they don’t compare to things like ‘His Dark Materials’. But the HP books are RIVETING. I think JKR is a really funny, clever writer who creates very lovable characters, and, like the best kidslit authors, isn’t afraid to tackle the messy reality of life. And she tells a great story.
As for Philip Pullman, I’m surprised to hear people say that they thought Pullman “wimped out” on the third book. Whoa. Where does that impression come from??? To me it seemed like he really went all out in the third book, took some serious risks, and said his most important ideas.
I read books MUCH better than Harry Potter as a child, but Harry Potter obsession is an opportunity. Get children keen to read, then stuff ‘em with better books.
We just made a list for my niece, so I’m glad to share!
Mary Stewart – The Little Broomstick
A girl and a cat join a school for young magicians. This book obviously influenced JK Rowling!
Susan Cooper – The Dark Is Rising series
Great characters, good/evil, coming of age/into power, and Arthurian legend!
Alan Garner – The Weirdstone of Brisingamen
Wonderful myth-based children’s story!
Gerald Durrell – The Talking Parcel
Children and a parrot try to save the magical land of Mythologia from marauding Cockatrices.
His animals/travels books are wonderful family books as well.
Lucy Boston – the Green Knowe books
Roald Dahl – James and the Giant Peach
Madeleine L’Engle – A Wrinkle in Time
Andre Maurois – Fattypuffs and Thinifers
Beverly Nichols – The Stream That Stood Still
Salman Rushdie – Haroun and the Sea of Stories
A fairytale for children and grownups both!
For younger kids: not exactly magic, but a magical world:
Tove Jansson – the Moomin books
Not fiction, but fictionalized mythologies:
Roger Lancelyn Green – Robin Hood, King Arthur, Greek Heroes, Ancient Egypt, The Tale of Troy
For teens:
Ann Maxwell – Fire Dancer, Timeshadow Rider
TH White – The Sword in the Stone
Mark Twain – A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
Man, Gerald Morris is one of the funniest arthurian legend interpreters I have ever read, and he hardly ever seems to get press. The guy’s got humor and style, and I find his work funny to this day, even though I first read them when I was twelve or so.
I love the E. E. Nesbitt, the Susan Cooper books and many of the others recommended in this list. I would strongly recommend
The diamond in the window by Jane Langton ( I almost named my son trebor nosnibor)
The Green Knowe series by L.M. Boston
The wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graehme
The thirteenth Floor by Sid Fleischman
The Red Keep by Allen French (most anything by French is good(good for boys with a kick ass heroine too and written in the 30’s would you believe it.)
Men of Iron , Otto of the silver hand by N. . Wyeth (also good for boys although dated style)
Captain’s Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
Treasure Island still works
The box of delights and The midnight folk by John Masefield excellent
The mary poppins series by P.L. Travers (much darker than the movie)
For memoires
The Dog who wouldn’t be by Farley Mowat
My Family and other animals by Gerald Durrell
White waters and black by Gordon MacCreagh One of the best!(if you wan’t to know the real names of the scientists contact me I have the list and they are all dead now!) This is for YA and adults although younger children might like it as a read out loud. That is how was first introduced to it. Actually to many of these books