I know shes a bigot and hates trans people, but i do think people are overlooking the fact that this was a kids series. This wasnt meant to be read and deconstructed and analyzed by adults.
When I read the books as a kid I really enjoyed the world. Some things made me pause or think, but for the most part it was a fun adventure. When I read it again in college, I couldn’t get through the first or second book because of how poor I found the writing.
But again, it is a children’s book. I dont reread Famous Five or Noddy anymore either. I used to love the Redwall series, but when I went back to read a couple last year I found I couldn’t get into it as much as I did when I was 10.
Are they the best books or even the best kids books in the world? Definitely not. Is she a brilliant writer? Definitely not. But were the stories engaging and fun and did they give a lot of children an intro to reading and fantasy? 100%. They became popular because even kids who hated reading enjoyed these stories. She might be a miserable awful person now but that doesnt change what these books did for a lot of good people too.
I’d argue that the series had WAY too much death, war, sexism and slavery to get a pass on being children’s books that are beyond scrutiny, that’s just my opinion though.
I think that’s part of what made the series so popular though. She did a great job at letting the characters in the books grow up alongside the readers. Someone who read the first book when they were 7 could enjoy the last book when they were 14.
I haven’t re-read the books since I finished them sometime around that age, so I won’t comment on the world-building or writing outside of recalling that I was completely absorbed and fascinated when I read them.
I know shes a bigot and hates trans people, but i do think people are overlooking the fact that this was a kids series. This wasnt meant to be read and deconstructed and analyzed by adults.
When I read the books as a kid I really enjoyed the world. Some things made me pause or think, but for the most part it was a fun adventure. When I read it again in college, I couldn’t get through the first or second book because of how poor I found the writing.
But again, it is a children’s book. I dont reread Famous Five or Noddy anymore either. I used to love the Redwall series, but when I went back to read a couple last year I found I couldn’t get into it as much as I did when I was 10.
Are they the best books or even the best kids books in the world? Definitely not. Is she a brilliant writer? Definitely not. But were the stories engaging and fun and did they give a lot of children an intro to reading and fantasy? 100%. They became popular because even kids who hated reading enjoyed these stories. She might be a miserable awful person now but that doesnt change what these books did for a lot of good people too.
I’d argue that the series had WAY too much death, war, sexism and slavery to get a pass on being children’s books that are beyond scrutiny, that’s just my opinion though.
The last 2 books had definitely grown past children’s labeling. Neither the writing nor the worldbuilding has grown alongside them, though.
I think that’s part of what made the series so popular though. She did a great job at letting the characters in the books grow up alongside the readers. Someone who read the first book when they were 7 could enjoy the last book when they were 14.
I haven’t re-read the books since I finished them sometime around that age, so I won’t comment on the world-building or writing outside of recalling that I was completely absorbed and fascinated when I read them.
Exactly! As they go on, they get more and more young adult, which is fantastic.
Still a better love story than Twilight.
And it’s a terrible love story.