Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Amber: Hello, I’m Amber and this is bbclearningenglish.com. In Entertainment today, we listen to a review of the seventh, and last, Harry Potter book - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – which millions of children (and adults) rushed out to buy at midnight on the day it was published simultaneously in 93 countries! It had a print run of 12 million in the US alone! After 10 years of twists and turns in the life of the young wizard, Harry Potter, there’s a final confrontation between Harry and a highly evil character. It’s a dark rollercoaster ride, with Harry on the run most of the time. And if the sales figures are true – this is officially the fastest selling book in history! We’ll hear from the author and book critic Amanda Craig. As soon as she got hold of her copy, she sat on the sofa reading it for ‘6 hours solid’ - she didn’t put it down until she’d finished! So what’s so magical about the Harry Potter books? Well, Amanda Craig has an interesting answer to that question. She quotes JK Rowling who has said she doesn’t really like ‘fantasy’ – that’s a type of fiction featuring imaginary worlds and magical events! (We have the related adjectives ‘fantastic’ and ‘fantastical’ – meaning - not real, strange and imaginary.) Amanda Craig says the world of Harry Potter is so ‘irresistible’ – it’s so overpowering – because of two things. She says it’s a result of – ‘it’s down to’ – two things. Try to catch what they are.

Amanda Craig: ‘One of the most interesting things about her is that she’s said that she doesn’t really like fantasy. And in fact, if you look at the way that she’s written it, I think the explanation for why she’d so popular is down to two things – one is that in every book she’s sort of writing a detective story or a thriller, and there’s where adults have got on to the whole series, but the other more interesting thing is she’s actually made the magical world seem real, seem something you could just walk into off Tottenham Court Road, and by doing that she’s also correspondingly made reality more magical, and I think that’s what’s so irresistible about her vision, her … you know, Harry’s whole world that it’s a world in which wizards do have to learn magic, they have to do homework, and that’s really delightful.’

Amber: So Amanda Craig explains that she thinks the magical power of the Harry Potter books is down to the exciting stories or plots – every book is like a detective story or thriller. And this is why adults like the books; this is why adults have ‘got on to’ them, why they have become interested in them. And the books make the magical seem real – as real as Tottenham Court Road - a busy road of shops and cafes in central London! And they make the real world seem magical – that is clever isn’t it?

Amber: JK Rowling is also often praised for being a very cinematic writer which is why her books make wonderful films. But she’s probably most respected for encouraging so many millions of young people to read fiction. She’s made them interested in it; she’s ‘turned them on to’ reading. And so now, reading is ‘cooler’ – it’s much more fashionable than it was. She’s stopped reading from being ‘killed off’ by computer games and she’s ‘paved the way’, she’s prepared the way, for another great children’s writer! Try to catch his name.

Amanda Craig: ‘I think a lot more children have been turned on to reading and reading has become a lot cooler than it was. It was real danger of just being killed off by game boxes and computers and I think – yes! – and she’s paved the way for another really great children’s writer which is Phillip Pullman, who has it all, I think!’

Amber: So if you’ve enjoyed the Harry Potter books, try reading Philip Pullman’s stories. Loads of adults think they’re brilliant too! Start with ‘His Dark Materials’… Now let’s recap the language we focussed on. fantasy – a type of fiction featuring imaginary worlds and magical events to be down to something – to be the result of something irresistible – overpowering cooler – more fashionable to be killed off – to be ended paved the way – prepared the way More entertainment news stories and language explanations next time at bbclearningenglish.com

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.
1. What is the text about?
2. Do we know how many books were sold at midnight the day it was published?
3. Who is Amanda Craig?
4. How is "fantasy" described?
5. Which two things explain the popularity of the book?
6. Why JK Rowling books make wonderful films?
7. Why is JKR more respected?
8. Who is Phillip Pullman?