For those of you who have been captured by the e-book craze, the sheer number of books available in this format is rivaled only by the books that are not available, or at least, which haven’t been available yet. Though we may enjoy Harry Potter’s adventures via audiobook, they have not yet been released to the e-reader crowd. J.K. Rowling now appears to be considering the possibility of releasing our favorite wizard to the e-book world. In this article, she is described as exhibiting some interest in the electronic market. While some of us may have loved the fact that our shared text could only be read on a printed page, others may be thrilled that we can take all seven books with us on airplane (really, if I could have any one object from the Wizarding World, it would be Hermione’s purse/self-storage unit, but I still like “real” books). What are your thoughts on the potential e-book release of the Hogwarts Adventures? Are you howling in indignation, laughing with delight, or scratching your head wondering what all the fuss is about?
Hogwarts Coming to a Kindle near you?
Katniss Casting: Hunger Games Filmmakers make Controversial Starlet Choice — Something Like the Capitol’s Gamesmakers?
After much anticipation, the Gamemakers behind The Hunger Games film adaptation, due out next year, have chosen a Katniss Everdeen. I’m sure we all have a Katniss in our minds, and no actress could satisfy every readers’ expectations or wishes. The official choice is apparently Jennifer Lawrence, who was just nominated for an Academy Award for her role in Winter’s Bone. Despite that evidence that she has the chops to carry such a demanding and complex role, there are a number of issues that many readers will doubtless see as problematic in the casting.
Attention Literary Potter Readers! Leaky Con Academic Proposal Deadline Extended to March 10!
This cartoon from this week’s Monterey Herald serves as a reminder that there are still folks who need reminding of our shared text’s literary value!
On that note, the deadline for academic programming proposals for Leaky Con 2011 is now March 10. I’m really looking forward to some amazing academic presentations, as well as the opportunity to confer with my brother wizards in the steamy Florida sunshine! If you’ve not gotten your proposal in yet, and your Time Turner is broken, get cracking! Even if you don’t want to present, but you have some ideas for academic programming that you’d like to see, email the fine folks planning the academic schedule.
Taking ‘Shared Text’ Vocabulary to the Movies!
“I’ll explain it to you. And I’ll use small words so you’ll be sure to understand.” The Princess Bride
Standardized tests are generally considered so terrifying that only “IRS” could be considered a scarier acronym than “SAT,” but Brian Leaf takes the big test to our favorite movies and gives us a big tub of popcorn to make learning frequently tested vocabulary as fun and effortless as a Saturday matinee. In Name that Movie: A Painless Vocabulary Builder, Leaf uses the approach that he has taken in Defining Twilight, Defining New Moon, Defining Eclipse, and Defining Breaking Dawn: he delves into the stories we already know and love and pulls out the words we ought to know.
Jane Eyre 7: A Lesson on Authorial Intent from Jasper Fforde’s Literary Detective Thursday Next
As we wrap up our wonderful visit with the delightful Miss Eyre and her creator, the equally delightful Charlotte Bronte, we will spend this last post on a rather unconventional visit to Thornfield in a luridly painted sports car with literary detective Thursday Next, whose exploits in The Eyre Affair cast the story of Jane and Rochester in a whole new light.
As our last entry in the Jane Eyre book conversation, The Eyre Affair poses some fascinating possibilities about the sacredness (or not) of texts, while also getting in plenty of great bookish humor. If you’ve had a chance to check out Jasper Fforde’s initial Thursday Next adventure, join us with your thoughts, or, if you’ve not picked up The Eyre Affair yet, join us anyway for some fun final thoughts on Jane.
Recent Conversation