The Casual Vacancy - JK Rowling

29%
22.09.13

This is so terrible in so many ways that I wonder whether it's actually an experiment to see how much influence a famous name has on sales. It's not the sex, drugs, swearing and politics that offend me; it's the fact it's badly written, badly plotted, badly edited (if at all) and crammed with too many characters, none of whom appear to have any human qualities at all.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J K Rowling

47%
26.07.07




I like Harry P, I really do, but 3 million copies sold in a day and in return we get tedium and disappointment. Yes, the world of Harry is vividly realised, and the characters are three dimensional and complex - but so is the plot so 400 pages of wordy backstory are required to make the ending appear slightly less predictable than is actually is. I wonder if any editorial intervention was allowed at all - certainly it has its moments of sparkle, but mainly it's self-indulgent introspection. A pity that Rowling doesn't feel the need to try - she owes her life to Harry too.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J K Rowling

62%

20.07.05

I was one of the two million who got a copy on the day it was published - just so I could join in the debate, of course. Readable and literate as usual, but not as good as the previous one, needing a decent edit more than ever and with nothing much actually happening for the first 500 pages. It's becoming harder to keep track of all the characters, or to establish why some are there at all - length doesn't equate with effort or quality. I still cried at the end, though.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J K Rowling

72%
16.04.05




I really wanted to hate this - there are so many reasons why it should be bad. For one, it doesn't even pretend to be a children's book - it's twice as long as it ought to be, it uses difficult vocabulary, it's violent and the complex politics are bewildering to anyone. The power and arrogance of the author has left it virtually unedited. The story doesn't always make sense. But... it's exciting and unpredictable, imaginative and compelling. What is there not to like?

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J K Rowling

68%
13.02.02




Rowling has given up all pretence that this 636 page book is for children. Readable as always but rather dull and flabby until the last 150 pages or so, when the pace suddenly picks up and it's no longer escapism but very dark, serious and foreboding. The now interestingly adolescent characters are facing a very different level of heroism - fine for a dramtic novel but the lightness of touch has faded. Philip Pullman still does the big issues better, but it'll be interesting to see how this develops when the fifth installment finally comes out.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J K Rowling

70%
26.11.01




There's something very strange about these Harry Potter books. I was initially put off by the hype, but you can't help enjong them, even devouring them, staying up late guiltily reading just one more chapter. There's never a dull moment (an achievement in itself), but the plots are inconsistent and often confusing, full of cliches and predictable in their unpredictability. It's odd that it's good. And increasingly resembling Star Wars.