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Original poster

This Harry Potter business...yes, I know there are other threads....but....

33 replies

NKF · 21/07/2007 17:17

...even so.

What is all this speed reading about? All this "I stayed up for hours. Job done." It's a really strange way to read a book. Isn't it?

OP posts:
beansprout · 21/07/2007 17:18

I think so, but have been told by people who a) took their kids along at midnight and b) have then spent much of the night/day reading it that I am the one getting bothered about nothing!!!!

KalunaLoveGood · 21/07/2007 17:18

I agree, I haven't bought my copy yet, or reread the other ones. I will do, but not under media pressure

WigWamBam · 21/07/2007 17:21

I guess that if you're a fan, you want to read it before the spoilers start getting everywhere.

And sometimes it's not about "speed reading"; it's about not being able to put a book down until you finish it. Have you never been so engrossed and caught up with a book that you've not wanted to stop reading it?

Spidermama · 21/07/2007 17:22

I bought a special dvd player so that I could speed watch Desperate Housewives and get to the end before anyone else.

It's mass mania.
'Mania: characterized by extremely elevated mood, energy, and unusual thought patterns'.

Original poster
NKF · 21/07/2007 17:22

Of course but never in this strange en masse way. It's like there is a group read-in going on. And do the spoilers really matter that much? Is it one of those books you only read once?

OP posts:
WigWamBam · 21/07/2007 17:25

The spoilers matter with any book if you really want to discover the story for yourself. There's not much point in reading a book if someone's already told you whodunnit and what they dun.

I do agree about the mass mania though ...

Original poster
NKF · 21/07/2007 17:28

Well, I think there is a point in reading a book if it's exciting, enjoyable, well-written and any other positive things that a book might be. This idea that the "who dies" is the thing that matters puzzles me. I can see that Bloomsbury has run a masterclass in hype but I've always been rather surprised at grown ups surrendering to it.

OP posts:
AttilaTheMum · 21/07/2007 17:30

I read it in just over 8.5 hours, (but not starting at midnight) - but that's a pretty standard reading rate for me, I always read fiction at more than a page a minute.
The only difference is that I didn't stop reading to do anything else. The thing about the HP books is that they do make you (all right - me) want to go on reading.
Anyway DS was waiting to read the book next & wanted to get started as he's going out to the pubthis evening.

krazykoolkazza · 21/07/2007 20:57

Frankly, I'm astounded that anyone has got 8.5 hours to sit on their arse reading a book all in one go

REBELlatrixlestrange · 21/07/2007 23:03

I'm envious of anyone who's got 8+ hours to sit and read a book, but good luck to those that have.

Did once read Rainman in one sitting....travelling through France whilst DH was driving. I was entranced, and there was no media hype about the book (there was around the film iirc).

AttilaTheMum · 22/07/2007 19:43

Ah, but my DCs are 19 & 17 so unlikely to need much attention except for lifts to the station, and DH did that. I just told them to get their own lunch...
(Actually I have just worked out that it only took 6.5 hours - I just can't count).

mumofSlytherinsmonsters · 22/07/2007 19:45

i didn't speed read it, i am a fast reader anyway and wanted to know what happened before i read/saw as well as being unable to put it down! Read it in 6 ish hours

BecauseImTheFatLady · 22/07/2007 19:45

I had to get it and read it quickly because I couldn't bear finding out from anyone else what happened!

When you've been engrossed in the whole series since the beginning it does become a pretty important thing to know how it's all going to end.

Blandmum · 22/07/2007 19:46

I can't not speed read now. It is a habit that I got into years ago. I read everything very quickly.

I did want to read it quickly though, to find out what happened in the end.

And I enjoyed it very much

EricL · 22/07/2007 20:40

I'll just wait for the film. It is after all a kids book and is just a piece of entertainment.

Very enjoyable, but now worth all this hype.

MrsWeasley · 22/07/2007 20:53

I usually take my time over any book for two reasons I like to savour each page and I am also not a quick reader (not to mention not having much time to atually read anything other than mn ).
But I have to say that I spent all day yesterday reading this book and I had a ball. It was a very rare day for "me". I didnt want to be told the ending and I knew at school someone who tell me but also I couldnt put the book down! I found it so gripping that I just wanted to keep reading.

FlameDelacour · 22/07/2007 20:59

I didn't want it spoiled and am actually annoyed I was forced into reading it all in one go.

LoonyLyraLovegood · 22/07/2007 21:06

How do you read a book as thick as HP in 6 hours? I'm astonished people can read so quickly. Do you just scan the page and get the gist of it? surely you can't really take everything in at that speed, can you?

merrygoround · 22/07/2007 21:06

I agree that for those who are fans of the HP stories it becomes very important to know what happens. I can see that for others it must seem like mass mania, but for me it was the end of a personal journey, and it has never been relevant to me what others think of the books. They have meant a lot to me, and if that makes me a bit sad well OK. I was a bit worried about hearing the ending in advance, but really it was the whole story I wanted, not just to know who died or ddn't die.

paulaplumpbottom · 22/07/2007 21:11

I agree. A good book should be relished. Although there have been a few books that i was up all night because I couldn't put it down I have my doubts to whether or not HP is one of them

merrygoround · 22/07/2007 21:11

Oh, I think it took me about 7 and a half hours - half past midnight till half past 2am on Sat morning, 9pm to 1.30am last night, and another hour snatched this afternoon with dd asking me to tell her every five minutes what was happening. I don't say i take in every last detail, but I do read every word, and am certainly trying to absorb as much as possible. I will definitely read it again, and probably fairly soon. That will be slower as I won't be so excited to know what is happening, and won't need to sacrifice sleep, and then I'll start reading the whole lot again any time when I feel in need of a bit of a lift.

Blandmum · 22/07/2007 21:15

For many years my job was to scan medical /biological journals for a pharma company. I did this about 4 hours each day. It is just a knack you pick up.

It is a lifesaver when it comes to making kids books in school!

FlameDelacour · 22/07/2007 21:17

I had time to read because DH sent me to my mum's for a childfree day - a whole day curled up in bed alone

LoonyLyraLovegood · 22/07/2007 21:21

Flamedelacour, I can only dream about a day like that.

FlameDelacour · 22/07/2007 21:26

It ain't gonna happen again in a hurry

I think he just realised a day of me gone was better than weeks of me whinging if I found out what happened