Dumbledore's Army

[Fittisize]

...er, the name of the chapter I just finished in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Superb book, like the other four (and I started reading before it turned into a gigantic craze). Assuming any of you bought it (I'm thinking at least a couple did) how far are you, what do you think of it?

Been reading for 4 days...technically (the I got it in the mail, I had three more days of exams 'till school was finished), and I'm on page 353.

[Dark Lord Neo]

I know who dies

[Fittisize]

Shaddup...

[A Black Falcon]

Haven't read any of them. Not very interested...

[Sacred Jellybean]

I tried reading the first one, but I thought it was boring. I personality don't see all the hype in such a series...

[Darunia]

The movie was really cool, but I don't really care any further than that.

[EdenMaster]

I don't read a lot, especially not kids books.

[Great Rumbler]

The series has become darker than people think. The first two might have been pretty kid-friendly, but books 3 and 4 [haven't read 5 yet] were fairly dark.

[Dark Jaguar]

Since when do things have to be dark just to be grown up? Are ALL adults always that depressed?

[A Black Falcon]

Because if it was all happiness and light it'd be less realistic and probably a kid's book... adult stuff can make it more like a real world so they add realistic things like darkness and greyscale that aren't in kid's stuff...

[Fittisize]

Originally posted by EdenMaster
I don't read a lot, especially not kids books.

Dur, that was stupid, especially coming from a Nintendo fan.

Besides, NOT kids stuff, best book series ever.

[A Black Falcon]

Anyone who says Harry Potter is the best series ever proves irrefutably that they don't read many good books.

[Fittisize]

When I say series...I mean series, not single books.

No books I have ever read can compare to the superb character development of the Harry Potter books.

Other books that I like, (not in a series): Sphere, Timeline, Prey (er...I like Micheal Crichton books...especially Sphere, probably my all-time favourite book), The Exorcist, etc. etc. etc.

Bah, I still like J.K Rowlings books better than Michael Crichton's books.

[A Black Falcon]

I know.

Some of my favorite serieses...

The Wheel of Time, The Sword of Truth, Otherland, Belgariad/Malloreon, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings... I don't know. There are so many, but those are all great.

In the kids' book genre my favorite series... I don't know. Redwall? I really liked those books.

[Fittisize]

Ack, it's not kids books though!

[A Black Falcon]

Redwall is a kids book series. Very good one too.

[Fittisize]

Oh..oh ok I thought you were talkin about Harry Potter.

[A Black Falcon]

Harry Potter isn't an adult book series on the same level as the ones I mentioned. No way.

Is it a childrens' book? It was in the first few, but it is growing up... young adult? Childish adult book? Probably something like that... because no way is even close to the same level as Wheel of Time, that's for sure.

Its probably more adult than Redwall now, though... though Redwall does have its moments. If you've read Martin the Warrior you'd know what I mean...

[Fittisize]

Same level as Lord of the Rings, then.

[A Black Falcon]

Wow, you think a lot of Harry Potter... same level as Lord of the Rings? That's THE fantasy series... it literally created the genre as it is...

[Fittisize]

Yeah, I was talkin about child/adult rating (er...maturity level? I dunno) Ok, Harry Potter is just as mature/kiddy as Lord of the Rings. Also, I've ready the LotR series, and while good, the character development does not match up. Character development really makes for an excellent story. LotR's strength is in its fantastic movies...

[A Black Falcon]

Err.. LOTR movies better than the LOTR books? How about NO WAY!!!

Especialy when you add the Silmarillion and the 12 books of the history of Middle Earth (which I haven't read, but have heard add a lot...).

[Fittisize]

Here's the system for the two largest fantasy genres: (by that I mean most popular and books sold)

LotR movies are bettr than LotR Books
HP Movies are far inferior to Harry Potter books

LotR books are far too tedious to read...so so many pages of boring explanations that throw off from the awesome storylines. That's why the movies are better.

[A Black Falcon]

The movies are better because they lack the detail of the books? :stupid:

[Fittisize]

No, the movies are better because they display the storyline and characters in a much more fashionable way...The Fellowship of the Ring could have been 100 pages shorter, and been a lot better book. The detail in LotR goes overboard...much overboard, and just makes them boring to read.

[A Black Falcon]

I absolutely disagree. I like the detail of the books. It adds a lot to the story...

[Fittisize]

I agree, I love lots of detail (think: any Michael Crichton book), but however in LotR I really felt there was too much unneeded detail...eh, to each his own.

[A Black Falcon]

There are 10 Wheel of Time books and they are all over 600 pages... I think the longest one hits 1,000. But I don't notice... they are so great...

On the other hand, Sword of Truth is a great series, but admittedly I think that the books could cut a hundred pages each (there are over 6, 7 hundred pages per book)... IMO at least they do drag in places.

It depends on the author really... and LOTR is in the first one.

[Fittisize]

Yeah, Harry Potter IV and V are 750 and 800+ pages long, and I'm never bored reading them...never, I could stay up all night reading those books.

Which brings another question, how many [normal] little kids read 750 page books for fun?? Once more, not a little kids series.

[A Black Falcon]

Elementary age kids you mean? Not many... I read longer books in Jr. High, though... but I've always read more than most people.

[Dark Jaguar]

Yeah that's nuts. The level of detail on Lord of the Rings (which is all ONE book actually, told in 3 volumes) is one thing I LOVE about it. He keeps it up in the Silmarillion (which is a VERY good read and together with Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit pretty much fully completes the tales of Arda (reading Silmarillion, you find out there's more to that planet then just Middle-Earth). You really get some good detailed explanations about what on Earth the ending of LOTR is supposed to mean in Sil. As for the other tales, I've heard they also add bits of detail here and there and are good stories in their own right besides. I'll be reading all of those eventually, though I don't look forward to the massive torment that will come from reading a whole book of unfinished tales :D. To each their own, but I LOVE being able to perfectly picture every single thing in a book like I can with JRR Tolkein's stuff.

Oh, one of the side stories I'm wanting to read most is apparently the result of a challenge between JRR and CS Lewis, one was to right a story about space travel and the other a story about time travel. The time travel one was worked into the stories of Arda, so of course I'll be wanting to read that. Considering I also enjoyed reading the tales of Narnia, I may also want to read whatever book Lewis wrote about space travel.

[lazyfatbum]

When's the last time you needed a thesaurus to read a "kid's book?"

[Laser Link]

I don't like the way Tolkien uses old English, and I love the Wheel of Time much more than LOTR. But you can't deny that everything else is a takeoff in one way or another. It doesn't mean everything else is bad, not at all, but you kinda have to consider Tolkien's books the best because without them we might not have fantasy books, movies, and games.

[A Black Falcon]

Yeah, without Tolkien the fantasy genre probably wouldn't exist... well it might, but not in the form its in, that's for sure.

Yeah, other serieses are probably technically better, but for what he did its unmatched... he didn't create a world in a familiar way -- he did it a new way.

And don't forget! He actually invented languages... Elvish is a whole language, with full grammar, script, and anything... can you think of any other fantasy author who TRULY invented languages?