The last few days have seen the 20th anniversary of the publication of the first Harry Potter book, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”, and I was wondering what the site feels about Gryffindor’s most famous alumnus

Me, I’m a fan. I’ve read the books and I like a couple of things about J.K Rowling. First, I like the fact that she’s a bit of a nerd. She realises that for successful world building the devil is in the details, so she gives you them. Pages and pages of them, from Quidditch rules to the names (and profiles) of the pubs in Hogsmere. It’s the main reason why the books get bigger and bigger towards the end, as she ensures that every loose end that’s out there is tied up.

I also like the films, though I’m not a fan of how they get darker (and greyer) as they go through the books, but that’s because I’m a it tired of all this “dark=serious” that you see in fantasy and super hero films over the last couple of decades. The Prisoner of Azkaban is my favourite, which has a light touch yet which channels a bit of the old » Continue Reading.