The Enid Blyton Society

Harry Potter seems to span the generations. I remember when the books were coming out, our minister and his sons were reading them with great enjoyment. In fact the father used incidents from the books in his sermons occasionally.

I remember when the final book in the series came out, all kinds of people, mainly adults, were happily reading it on board the trains in Melbourne while I was still waiting to get my hands on a copy (my sister was going to lend me hers once she'd finished it — she bought the whole series, I didn't) and trying to resist the temptation to read over people's shoulders during the journey!

But Harry Potter seems to have been universally acclaimed as Great Literature and something that grown-ups can read without shame or embarrassment — actually, the last few books in the series were quite dark and "adult" in places and I wouldn't recommend those ones to someone under 10 unless they were a quite mature reader and thinker. Whereas Enid Blyton always seems to get lumped in the "immature" category and anyone reading her books past the age of 10 might well get a shouldn't-you-have-grown-out-of-that-by-now attitude from onlookers. That doesn't worry me now I'm (sort of) grown up, but if I were an adult man reading Blyton in public, I can imagine people might think there was something sinister in it — which there shouldn't be, but I can understand why people would think that. And yet I've seen adult men reading Harry Potter and very few people seem to think of that as creepy... it's a strange world.

I might be wrong, but tendencies to think "National" seemed to have increased after the seventh book of the Harry Potter saga had been published. I just wonder how many are thinking that Voldemort had the right idea?

I hope not, Wolfgang, I sincerely hope not. A girl I knew at university in my Honours year was doing her thesis on the parallels between certain themes in Harry Potter and the rise of Nazism (the animosity against "mixed-blood" wizards and so on). I don't know how far that interpretation can be taken, but at least the books themselves were quite clear about where that kind of thinking leads to...

I can tell that the Harry potter books must be classed as 'Great Literature' because I've only ever read half of the first one. I found it completely dull - like most 'Great Literature' in my opinion, lol!!

There's no stigma attached to an adult reading Harry Potter in public because of the sheer force of numbers. When you can't be singled out because everybody is doing it there's no ridicule attached. However, the Harry Potter books are certainly not classed as "Great Literature" by stuffy professors. Those who value linguistic artistry to the exclusion of anything else, of storytelling in particular, are unable to appreciate them.

It's not 'Great Literature', it is perhaps classed as 'Awesome' or 'cool' literature, if you know what I mean.
It is much darker than EB, especially the final few books, and so, I guess, there are so many adults who read it openly. They perhaps don't feel ashamed, or rather people don't think it's weird, simply coz it's dark, later on.
Personally I really enjoyed the series, but feel it's a tad overrated.

Rob Houghton wrote:I can tell that the Harry potter books must be classed as 'Great Literature' because I've only ever read half of the first one. I found it completely dull - like most 'Great Literature' in my opinion, lol!!

I've never completed the first one, only watched that movie, as I too, found it dull. They're much better later on, though.

Wolfgang wrote:I just wonder how many are thinking that Voldemort had the right idea?

Over 70% of my friends who have read/watched HP are captivated by Voldemort and Slytherin.

Darrell71 wrote:It's not 'Great Literature', it is perhaps classed as 'Awesome' or 'cool' literature, if you know what I mean.

Yes, that's more what I meant really, too.

Darrell71 wrote: Personally I really enjoyed the series, but feel it's a tad overrated.

Yes, I enjoyed it as well, but I agree it's a bit overrated. I read all the books and saw two of the films, but have never felt any impulse to read or watch them again. But plenty of people love the series, and there are certainly worse things one could be obsessed with!

Darrell71 wrote: Over 70% of my friends who have read/watched HP are captivated by Voldemort and Slytherin.

Now that IS a little scary, if they're serious, and probably not the effect J.K. Rowling intended the books to have...

I have never read a single Harry Potter book nor do I ever intend to. Nothing against them, I just have never felt even the slightest interest in the series. I've sat through a couple of the films on Christmas Days but I didn't particularly think the plots were that great although the scenery and special effects were good.

I have never read a Harry Potter book either. Nor have I watched any of the films. I don't really know why; lack of interest, lack of time, other books I'd sooner read.

Pick one up, John; you might be enthralled!

I'm with John on this one. I've never read a Harry Potter, and a couple of the films I saw I didn't like. Sorry Harry Potter fans, not for me.

I'm the same. Hated the first book (I literally read half of the first chapter and gave the book to a charity shop!) and the two or three films I've seen left me cold...but then again so did the films of 'The Lord of the Rings' and when I read The Hobit it was 'okay' but I wouldn't read it again!

Yes I would. If I was sat on a train or something I would have no problem whatsoever getting out an EB book to read, in fact it would be the only book I would take out as I don't read anything else. People can think what they like, I'd rather be seen reading any of Enid's books any day than a trashy shallow celebrity magazine or something like 50 Shades of Grey!

I completely agree with you...
It's a pity that small children are no longer seen reading books but looking at their phones. I wish more people would know Enid Blyton. Here, in my school, if I ask them if they've read an EB book they most often give me a blank look (they do not know her) ..