how come nobody has bought Rowling's new book?

[notactuallyme]

went into town at 4pm after work, thinking 'shame, they'll all be gone' only to find that every shop had them discounted - a tenner in Waterstones! HMV had piles of them and I gave in and bought one in Tescos for £9 - what happened there then?

I do plan to read it, though I have a long list of other books to get through first (including the new Sebastian Faulks, which I'm reading at the moment, plus the new Ben Goldacre book and the Salman Rushdie memoir, and various others). Am slightly put off by the fact that the Kindle price is apparently higher than the hardback price - normally one of the reasons I like the Kindle is that I can buy books as soon as they come out rather than wait for the cheap paperback edition.

The Guardian review was largely favourable - the only other review I've read is Jan Moir in the Daily Mail, which was very hostile, which as far as I'm concerned counts as an endorsement.

I just don't fancy it. The story doesn't interest me and it's been hyped to hell and back which is always puts me off. I would never shell out for a hardback anyway.

I'm a huge Pratchett fan too, but I always wait for the paperback.

Doesn't appeal to me.
I read the first HP to ds and then gave up.

I buy hardbacks...love them. I like the idea of reading a book before all you lot. [ grin]

I have heard all kinds of twattery on here, but banning your child from reading Harry Potter really is quite something.

No interest. Had no interest in HP until DSs were old enough, and like others upthread liked the plot but not the writing.

At the time DS2 loved it, but he doesn't reread them the way he has Percy Jackson or Philip Pullman, for example.

I generally avoid stuff with this kind of hype so unless I read great reviews I am unlikely to read it even from the library.

Read the opening bit, and feel like carrying on. Whether or not I end up feeling like corygal remains to be seen. Not sure if local electtions are that exciting.

Corygal - 'none of the characters is very nice'

Think you will find that should be, 'none of the characters very nice'

And for the poster that stated Harry Potter is the book any literate, clever woman could have written, well why didn't you?

I don't buy HBs, even discounted. All my shelves are set at PB hight.

rubberglove genuine question as I often get these things wrong, but "none of the characters is very nice" looks right to me as in "not one of the characters is very nice".

Therefore "is" seems right as you would say "one is" not "one are".

Have I got this one wrong? Sorry I know this isn't pedant's corner but need to know

Corygal - I disagree, I thought sukhvinder (sp?) and Tessa were also sympathetic. Yes the relentless beating of the middle classes was a bit tedious. I am middle class and although yes the snobbery and disdain exists there are also some amazing kindness and generosity of which no drop is evident in this book.
I thought some of her observations and metaphors were excellent but the book was just so damn grim. The families were all so vile to each other it was depressing. She is excellent at capturing the self absorption and misery of teenagers.
I am a huge Harry Potter fan. If I had read the casual vacancy as a novel by an unknown author I probably wouldn't read their next book. I think, though, JK Rowling had to write something so extreme in its difference to Harry Potter in order to distance herself from the inevitable comparisons.
It's just the enormous chip on her shoulder dominates this book and some great writing is blanketed under the weight of her hatred of the middle classes. It prevented her from writing in any truly likeable characters. Personally I need to like at least one character in a book.
So no, I don't think I'll be buying any more of her adult stuff but I really do not think she deserves the slating she gets. She needs slightly stricter editing (but who would dare these days) as she can drop to a snail like pace but IMO she is a good writer.

Shout out to all you pedants out there...

None takes the singular.

The only thing I'm not getting so far is the huge amount of interest in the parish council vacancy, and the slightly cartoon like characters - the very huge deli owner etc. Also a bit of stereotyping - can't tell if she is taking the p*ss out of middle class attitudes to council estates or if she thinks that's what they are like? Kind of what pov is the story told from?

According to the Times today it has exceeded sales expectations for the first few days.

Enjoying the pedantry on this thread!

I'm a huge fan of HP. Yes the writing is generally functional and sometimes clunky, but the plotting is close to peerless. The amount of Chekov's guns and the mastery in how they're used in later books is amazing.
There's that saying about character's to love, plot to excite, great writing. Having two of the three makes up for the other one, and HP has the first two in spades.

Which is why, based on the reviews, I won't be buying a hb copy of the CV. I'll get one from a charity shop later on.

Saying that, I very much admire Rowling for not sticking to what she knows already.
She could have played it safe.

well, i was enjoying it but am getting a bit bogged down by the writing. its a bit ploddy in places like eating a really doughy scone.

I just finshed TCV. I made myself finish it despite the dull writing and the singularly unappealing characters.
I am a fan of the HP books. I know they aren't perect but my DC have had so much pleasure from them and I found them fun and sometimes very moving. The sense of heart and love in the HP series is completely missing in TCV. Nasty cardboard cut out characters going through the motions.
And I paid full price!

Omg I am having trouble getting thro this!
Sooooooo hard like wading through porridge.

Finished it, very disappointed. Social comment by numbers.

I don't think anybody could write Harry Potter and I think her writing style and use of dialogue are very good. If anybody could write it why haven't they?
Fair enough it's not War and Peace but it has a great plot which takes everybody back to Enid Blyton style books.

Because it's easy enough to go online and download it for free

I've started it. It's not compelling enough to drag me away from mumsnet keep me that interested, not bothered finishing it yet.

Yes, Diana Wynne Jones is a fabulous writer, same genre but infinitely more inventive, and well written.

Greencolorpack, they're all still available, so you don't need to yearn for them!

I can't imagine reading HP again now dd has grown out of it.

Trudi Canavan wrote better with her magicians guild books.

I'm glad someone else picked up on the twattish behaviour of controlling a child's reading and shoving your views upon them.

? Mrs richards ?

Don't know why anybody else has or hasn't bought it, but I am boycotting it because of the appalling treatment of her translators:

"The upcoming book is due to have 480 pages. Translators may not see it before it is published. (Usually translators can prepare by reading preliminary texts in advance.) The translator has to agree, sight unseen, to turn in the finished copy in three weeks, by October 18, in time for release for Christmas sales. That?s 23 pages of polished final text every day for 21 days ? without time to read the book beforehand!"

Source

JK is clearly intelligent.

So why do you think she was so determined about publishing this clearly sub-standard work ?