I could not quite understand it. Several years back, I don't think I ever stayed up late for a Nancy Drew book release party. Much ado about nothing? I could probably name at least 4 people who bought the book less than 12 hours after its release. There was media coverage, reader and Potter-fan commentaries all throughout. The frenzy was unbelievable. Never really got into the series and would even kid around with some of my Potter-crazy friends, "It's a cult. You all are sucked in. Get out while you can!"
The books reportedly were written in a manner that carries over a bigger age demographic than what the children/teen literature genre usually dictates. At the release of book #6-Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, stories about J.K. Rowling's book reading at the Edinburgh Castle were brought forward, news features of fans who read the book within a day (672 pages) were on every media avenue imaginable, and discussions anticipating what the end might be - well before Madame Rowling even has a chance to sit down and write it - are in countless forums. In light of that release, CNN even reported a study on how young students' overall aptitude scores in both math and verbal recently increased as a result of more encouraged reading outside the curriculum. Did J.K Rowling really make youth reading "cool" again?
(All together now: "TV will rot your brain. TV will rot your brain. TV will...)
In the Forbes Special Issue dated March 14, 2004, J.K. Rowling was valued at $2 billion for her (then) five books that sold 250 million copies. There were speculations in that issue that the "Potter craze may have already peaked." Fast forward 2006: The Forbes pundits were wrong and didn't see this coming. In the US, there were approximately 25,000 copies being sold every hour for the first 24 hours of release.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/07/18/britain.sales.reut/index.html
There is this part of me that is intrigued, almost urging me to pick up a copy to know first hand what this phenomenon is all about. Perhaps am a little bit concerned to learn my opinions are wrong. Even more so, maybe I am resisting the hype and be in turn scoffed at by those whom I initially pointed my finger at. Either way, I could only wish that my success story will be along the lines of Harry Potter's creator. J.K. Rowling, the former welfare mother could not have possibly fathomed what her creative burst of genius produced: another sub-culture with a magic of its own.
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