Posted by Robert Hill on January 03, 2003 at 20:10:08 from 195.92.168.163 user eclrh.
In Reply to: Re: New Ransomites posted by Robert Dilley on January 03, 2003 at 15:10:20:
An aunt and uncle bought me a copy of S&A for Christmas 1957 when I was 8, approaching 9.
I loved it and before very long I had been bought a further 3 of the books as presents.
I borrowed the remaining 8 from school or public libraries.
In those days there were only Cape hardbacks.
Unlike many people I have never gone through a period when I felt
embarrassed to read a "children's" book, provided it was a good book.
So over the next 20 years I re-read the 4 I owned several times.
This left 8 books which I had only read once. In my 30s I bought these
in Puffin paperback. This was in the 1980s and I expected that current
children would not be interested, but one day when I was buying a
couple of them I was encouraged to overhear some kids discussing them
knowledgeably.
I have no children so can't comment on that aspect - except to answer
Ed's question: kids start reading Potter because their friends tell them
it's great.
When buying my first Potter book in 1999 the shop was running an offer:
buy a Potter book and get another children's book at reduced price.
I chose a Red Fox Swallowdale to replace my Puffin Swallowdale, which
had come to pieces after several readings. This has created a nice
link in my mind between Ransome and Rowling.