Posted by Peter Ceresole on December 22, 2005 at 22:00:20 from 80.177.22.49 user PeterC.
In Reply to: Re: Approaching Ransome (was Enid Blyton beats AR hands down) posted by Peter H on December 22, 2005 at 18:42:44:
Should we just put it all down to coincidence, or perhaps convergent evolution in writing-styles for children in the early 20th century?
Hard to ascribe it to anything else. And it would have been amazing if it hadn't been true, to some extent. AR was feeling his way into a strange port...
I read the first of the 'Harry Potter' books some time ago. It would be impossible to ignore Rowling's amazing, historic success as a children's author. But the main thing that struck me about the one I read (I can't remember the title but as I say it was the first one) was that it was a hugely competent recycling of classic English 'children at school' books. Stalky and Co, Jennings, Billy Bunter, they were all there in some aspect. It doesn't mean that this was plagiarism- it wasn't. It was just an intelligent and determined reworking of well proved and well loved themes. And it included quite enough originality to give the Potter books plenty of virtue. Rowling deserves the fame and money.
So did AR.