When the Lord of the Rings movies came out, I started reading Tolkien’s books at the same time. For the first two movies (Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers), I watched the movie first and then read the book, which was pretty cool. I loved how the book would give extra descriptions, extra scenes, extra characters when compared to the movies.
Then I made the mistake of reading Return of the King before I watched the movie. What a letdown. I mean, the movie was still cool and everything, but it departed from the book in some key ways (especially regarding the demise of Saruman and the scouring of the Shire). It was more fun to watch first and read later.
During the time I was reading Lord of the Rings, my uncle tried to get me interested in the Harry Potter series. I picked up the first book and tried to start reading it, but I just couldn’t get into it. I think it was mainly a timing issue. It’s hard to put Rowling up against Tolkien and not choose Tolkien (at least it was for me). So, I went on immersing myself in Middle Earth and never made the trip to Hogwarts.
So, what do you all think? Should I give Harry Potter another shot? Is the series a good read? Also, what do you think of the movies? Are they good representations of the books? Or should I watch the movies first and then read the books?
The Potter books are a good read. However, you really have to look at Books and Movies as two related, but seperate, things. The movies are good and tell the tale in a film-oriented way.
Yes, give Harry another shot. One thing I’m continually impressed with as I reread the series is the depth and texture adult characters are given in Harry, which is somewhat unusual for a children’s book. The gentle kindness of Lupin, for example, and the way he is so sensitive to others hurts and uses his authority and adulthood and understanding to smooth those moments with such grace.
As a general rule I believe books first, then movie, in any circumstance. 🙂 The movies do generally do a really good job, but they’re 2 hour movies of 700 page books, so lots of subplots are dropped and there are major “revisions” to keep the move plot tight enough to fit 2 hours. I don’t mind, but some people do. One thing I really like about the movies is that the cinematography is breathtaking, and spectacular cinematography isn’t often “wasted” on a children’s movie.
Lord of the Rings, however, is written for an adult audience. Harry Potter is written for children. I personally adore children’s lit and often read it preferentially, but many adults just don’t get into it. That might contribute to why you liked it so much less than LotR.
The most disappointing thing about The Return of the King movie is that the returnign hobits were treated as forgotten heroes, when in reality, they were treated as heroes. This is because the Scouring of the Shire was not filmed for the movie. It’s a shame, but more than one person commented to me that the movie had too many logical ending points, but just kept going. I should be happy it didn’t end with Aragorn being crowned King of Gondor.
I almost always read books before seeing the movies. As a rule, they allow background that allows me to better enjoy and understand the movie.
You do have to expect, however, that movies have to be condensed versions of the books. No one would sit through that long of a movie.
Tolkien created a spectacular world, complete with its own languages, songs, poems, complex cultures and detailed history. However, his character development was a bit lacking, I think. I actually think the movies do a better job of character development than the novels (although I may be lynched by Tolkien-fiends for saying so).
Rowling does an excellent job of character development, although some characters do end up being a bit stereotypical. I forgive her that because the series is targeted to an audience of children, after all. Her world does not have the awesome complexity of Tolkien’s, but it’s spectacular nonetheless. The interaction of the tangential wizarding world with the ordinary realm (the world of “muggles”, in Potter parlance) is particularly interesting and often quite humorous. I would give Harry Potter another shot.
I, too, love Harry Potter. I’m a bit biased, though, my kids and I started reading the books after a house fire, we were living in a hotel and it’s the one really memorable event of the time.
The books get darker and more complex as you continue through the series, so if the first one seems like too easy of a read, I would have patience.
I am a MASSIVE Harry Potter fan. I’ve been listening to podcasts and rereading all the books – in anticipation of the release of book 7. I’m having trouble even focusing on anything else this week. You haven’t seen me around here lately because for the past month or so, I’ve beens spending all my free surfing time at Harry Potter sites. Seriously.
But I’ve read both book series, and watched all the movies save the Order of the Phoenix (which just came out this past weekend). I’m a huge fan of the books, much more so than the movies. They’re fun and all, but I just can’t get around the characters and plot threads that have to be dropped for the movies. So I’m all about the books. I enjoy the movies immensely, but it’s really the books for me.
I’m splitting my posts as I could go on about HP for a long time…
but vs. LOTR – I enjoyed both series close to equally. HP is going on 7 books and is definitely more about the characters. The world is smaller in scope, but Rowling has a humor that I adore and didn’t find in LOTR. Tolkien is rather serious and formal. JKR is more playful. You could say that it’s because they are children’s books, but her humor is by no means juvenile. It’s simply universal. Akin to Shakespearean humor, just less bawdy (until Half Blood Prince, though, a bit of bawdy gets in there with the monster that lives in Harry’s chest when he gets near a particular girl).
I cannot recommend reading them enough, CJ. You sound like me, an avid reader. I’ve read the Chronicles of Narnia and various other series geared towards young readers, and HP is pretty much the best of the bunch. As avid fans like me know, there are sites that record the HP series as Canon (sp?) – in the way that there is LOTR canon, literary canon, etc. The depth of the HP magical world, although somewhat smaller that LOTRs/Tolkien’s – is still worthy of study unto itself.
And definitely worth your time, CJ.
Also, I’m going up to Naperville for the final Party That Shall Not Be Named, and am actually looking for other avid fans to join me/split the gas costs/drive back late night with me. Post in this thread if you are interested and we’ll get in touch.
Knight in Dragon is correct. Tolkien work was an attempt, and he succeeded, in creating a new mythology. This based on his work with Finnish, Norse, etc… mythology and literature. What can really help enlighten LOTR fans is reading a Tolkien biography!
This is somewhat off the topic of LoTR & Harry Potter, but if anyone is looking for a wonderful series of fantasy genre novels, check out George R.R. Martin‘s A Song of Ice and Fire series. Great plot. Great politics. Complex world. Complex characters. VERY gritty. Just be warned – Martin is completely unafraid of killing off MAJOR characters.
I’ve heard other big Potter fans highly recommend the “His Dark Materials” series by Phillip Pullman.
I completely agree with Knight. Martin’s saga is great stuff. Two problems: 1) it is very, very graphic, language and all 2) it takes forever for the next book in series comes out.
CJ might not like “His Dark Materials” because of Pullman’s anti-religion themes. I enjoy Pullman but I found the anti-religion stuff a little off-putting. I’m okay with religion being the convenient bad guy (the Catholic Church makes an awesome “evil conspiracy” character, it just does), but Pullman was just so angrily hostile and sometimes ugly, I thought.
I must confess that I am the only enormous fantasy fan alive that didn’t like George R.R. Martin’s “Fire and Ice” saga. I just didn’t! I think I object to character slaughter. 😀
My recent fantasy faves include Garth Nix’s Abhorsen trilogy (ass-kickingly good), Jane Lindskold’s Firekeeper sextet (brain candy, but really well-developed brain candy), and Lois McMaster Bujold’s Chalion novels, in particular “The Curse of Chalion” which has possibly the single best description of a religious experience in all of fiction. Seriously.
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell was quite good; similar but quicker reads in the same vein include Patricia Wrede’s “Mairelon the Magician,” and Caroline Stevemer’s “A College of Magics,” and the two together in “Sorcery & Cecelia: Or, the Enchanted Chocolate Pot.” Those are all YA, tho, and Strange/Norrell was adult.
Damn, Eyebrows reads a lot – I’m jealous. I blame my two kids, they owe me a lot of books.
Me & hubby have a perennial book storage problem as we are both book nerds. 🙂
We used to read a LOT until we had kids.
I’ve feeling very smart – since I read one book that Eyebrows read – must say something! I loved Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell – though a long book and a slow read for me.
My cousin Michael told me (before I was even married) that he had been a voracious reader, like myself, until he had kids. At the time, I thought, oh, how stupid. I’ll still read when I have kids.
Live and learn, I suppose. Someday, Mahkno, they’ll grow up and we can read the days away once again.
Many of my childhood memories involve my mother telling us to go amuse ourselves until she finished her library book. She never minded being interrupted except when she was reading and it drove her CRAZY if we interrupted her while reading for anything less than a housefire.
I was an avid book reader also. When my children were young I would have three or four books going at the same time in different parts of the house. If I couldn’t find one I offered the kids a reward to find it for me. Usually a nickle or a dime (in those days that was a lot of money). One day it dawned on me that they were deliberately hiding my books so they could collect the reward. But I didn’t really mind because it made them understand how important book reading was for them. They all grew up being avid readers also.
I often tell my boys to give me a few minutes to finish my chapter and then I’ll play with them. Reading is just such a fabulous experience. My 6 year old is on the verge of literacy. I can’t wait for him to totally get it. He’s gonna go crazy with reading, I know it! He’s already into a particular series for kids, BeastQuest – which I highly recommend for early readers. Border’s has it for sure. Ferno the Fire Dragon is the first one.