JKR-reading her work is like a comforting hug

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My son is 8 and recently we've been watching the Harry Potter films and tonight he chose Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as his bedtime story. I've not read the HP books to him yet unless you count in utero but one chapter in and he's hooked.
What struck me on reading that first chapter is how comforting her writing style is, how she immediately transports you into the world she has created and how the words flow beautifully. I read to my son most nights and we have been through many books over the years but in the last couple of years they have got longer and more intricate. Ive found many hard going. Ive stumbled over the words, mis-read so many things and had to go back. I was thinking it was me until I picked up JKR's book tonight and the words flowed smoothly like silk. Ds did not interrupt me to ask anything even once. There was no confusion, no doubts, no misunderstandings, no messing with Lego, no rearranging his selection of cuddlies, no getting up to just this that or the other, he was totally transfixed. Now I know he's seen the film so knows the story but the film doesn't do much justice to that first chapter.
Reading tonight I felt like my son and I were cocooned in a literary hug from JKR and my love for her grew significantly tonight and I already think she's awesome. The weather was rather wild outside and that made it more atmospheric but even so, it was such a lovely bedtime story time. Magical 🧙🏻‍♀️

I have her soon to be released Strike book on pre- order and can't wait for that to arrive. I'm not sure that will be a hug in book form but if the previous Strike books are anything to go by then it will be fantastic. I'll get to read HP to my son and then read Strike to myself. What blissful evenings these will be. I'm generally sworn off men but Cormoran gets me a bit flustered I must say.

Then there's her fight for our rights. The domestic abuse victim support. Ovaries of steel and a true role model.

If anyone would like to join me in an appreciation thread and a toast to the stunningly awesome JK Rowling then please do 🥂

I love her work. ☺️ Here's to JK! 🍻

I totally agree, she is wonderful in every way!

I too have the next Robin and Strike on order and can't wait.
Last year Ink Black Heart came out when I was on holiday. I told myself I would wait to get it when I got home but really could not deprive myself while everyone else was reading so I traveled to the nearest book shop first thing in the morning and bought it.

I loved it, have listened to it on Audible twice and am just planning my reread in readiness for September.

By the way, your description of your evening was perfect to I was cwtched up there with you☺️

I read Harry Potter when it first came out, have watched the films and listened to the audiobooks over and over again and am again listening to The Goblet of Fire and loving it - magical shit (I like Strike too but HP is my thing)

She's a genius, honestly. Total role model. I've read everything she's published and her writing style is like a warm bath.

JKR is an amazing woman

But I have a confession...

Whispers

I've never read any of her books.

I do own the first Harry Potter book but it's in Latin and I can't read Latin!

Love her. Although only read the first two
Harry Potter books (confession). I've recently been to Florida Orlando HP world and just thought this was all in her head! It was amazing!

Agree 100% with her politics and effectively saving women! She's amazing

The other day I went to pre-order the latest Strike book on Kindle only to discover I’d already ordered it. Oops.

The Strike books are the nearest thing I’ve found as an adult to that all-absorbing sense of being immersed in another works that I used to experience reading as a child.

I have just read the first Strike book on holiday, and I was very impressed. I haven't watched TV adaptations of it so it was all fresh.

(Too late for the OP I guess, but I do think you should read the HP books before watching the films).

This is mostly independent of her activism for me (though it's obvious how her politics informs her writing, for the better) but yes! Read the last Strike book in a fortnight - normally a book that long would take me months.

I reached first 5 to my kids as they came out. Her plotting is insanely brilliant. And they loved her use of Latin and clever anagrams and palindromes.

They were blessed with magical books / films in their childhood. Harry , LOTR and the Toy Story trilogy. She made reading books cool just as the Internet threatened their very existence imo.

• aargh Read not reached ffs

I loved the books as a child, then grew up/out of them**. And like you started reading them to my son when he was about 8 and it was just lovely revisiting. Especially seeing them through his eyes as a first exposure not knowing what was going to happen next (trying to guess who the bad guy was in the first book for instance, and whether or not Snape was good/bad throughout the books). Except now he doesn't want anything read to him that wasn't written by JKR.

** In my 30s I would happily read children's book. But not as a pretentious 16 year old. So I missed the last couple. My loss.

Neither of my children were keen readers until they found Harry Potter. DS2 pretty much hated all fiction books he tried, though he'd sit and read a cookery book from cover to cover.
Now he's just finished The Prisoner of Azkaban and is champing at the bit to start the next one!

The last Harry potter book was released from midnight…and it must have been a Wednesday because I used to go to a nightclub on those nights

So 1am found me in adsa buying 4 copies of the book, 1 for me and 3 for friends of mine….one of which i had to leave on someones porch so her husband could read it that night 😀

I also bought the last Potter book at midnight. Then sat up til 6am to read it to the end! They really were, and are, such an amazing phenomenon. Nothing has lit a fire in children's imaginations like it. And it's still going - libraries still have waiting lists for borrowing the HP books.

The Strike series is excellent too. I'm not really a fan of crime literature but the characterisation is so brilliant in them I am completely hooked.

She is a most excellent writer and woman. I read the first HP when it came out years ago as I always used to read kids books since I was a teacher. It was a rainy night in our camper van and I ended up reading all night with a torch. In the morning I remember telling my partner about this amazing new author who was going to be incredible. I bought copies for all the kids who had birthday parties that year too. I am currently reading all the Strike books one by one as my partner bought me the latest at Christmas which meant I needed to buy all the others too as I have to read them in order.

So yes, love her

Honestly I wasn't that impressed with Harry Potter. Didn't hate it and read the series but found it generic and the writing a bit lumpy.

I have huge amounts of respect for JKR as a person but I think she's a mediocre author.

That said, I'm very grateful so many people do love her books and films because it's allowed her to donate so much.

Love her books so much, they are so rich. Her characterisations are brilliant - Gilderoy Lockhart and Dolores Umbridge (as well as Snape, naturally) are some of my favourites.

There are SO MANY Umbridges in real life, many Labour politicians remind me of Umbridge... and of course Lockhart is true of many in real life also. People who value fame above all else. Some of the interactions with Harry and Lockhart are hilarious when the latter just can't understand that Harry isn't motivated by fame.

I love Strike too, of course. Off to pre-order.... didn't realise there was a new one due...

How lovely for you that you have all the Strike books ahead of you. I’m almost jealous!
I have them all on audiobook and I listen to them often.
Even though they are about murder, the story of the main characters and world building is like a warm hug or a long relaxing bath.

You’re going to love them

Totally agree. I remember when my son was ill and he lay with his head on my lap and I stroked (aka scratched) his back and read Harry Potter to him. He was 15 😂

I remember when a new HP was out on the day my children were going on holiday, I asked them whether they would rather a) read the book now and not go on holiday or b) go on holiday and read the book when they got back. They both said they'd forego the holiday - they were desperate to read that book. We went to the bookshop at midnight - it was so exciting for them. (I didn't make them give up the holiday, obviously!)

They take me quite a long time - but that's because I ration them out so as not to finish them too quickly, as I feel bereft when they end.

She does have this skill of making the world feel cosy and immersive even when there's murders going on 🙃

Can't wait for the next one, pre-ordered it ages ago.

DD was completely obsessed with HP from age 10 to 17. She says she's over it now, which makes me sad. I do hope it's not because she's read the crap online.

I caught my 70+ year old dad reading Philosophers Stone after I lent it to my mum. Although he read the newspaper every day and did the crossword, I’d never ever seen him read a novel. He read the next two also. His only comment when I asked him about it was “I wish someone had written books like that when I was a lad”.

I think the later stories were just too long for him, a bit daunting to pick up for someone unused to reading fiction. But I will always be grateful to JKR for being able to introduce dad to the pleasure of being immersed in a good book.

I'm going to disappoint you here. After liking HP, and the early Strike I cannot be getting on with The Ink Black Heart. No sooner do I get into the flow than there are more pages of that dratted messaging. That is not the way I read things, I've reached ComicCon, but I dread going in again because there's more of the split page stuff. I am impressed that she is able to construct her plotting like this, and call into being people like Cormoran and Robin, but I can't read like that.

If you're not bothered about trying to "solve the mystery" yourself, @Treaclemine (great username btw) you could skip those parts and I still think it would read ok. You could certainly skim read them.

I bought myself Ink Black Heart for Christmas last year, and just skipped the messaging - sorry JKR, I'm sure you toiled over it, but I really enjoyed the book without it.

I'll be buying the new one for this Christmas - I agree completely that it's like a childhood immersive reading experience.