Booktrade: Little, Brown To Publish J.K. Rowling’s First Novel For Adults
Media Bistro: J. K. Rowling to Publish First Adult Novel
A little birdie at Leaky Cauldron told me a year ago that Ms. Rowling was writing an adult novel and that she could do nothing else but write, that “it was something all consuming, like a love affair.” That’s the little birdie talking, not Ms. Rowling. I half expected that this would mean a Christmas release in 2011. Nope. It took a little longer than that. Look for pre-publication announcements of title, plot, etc., in the coming months in preparation for the most anticipated book since Deathly Hallows.
Anyone else out there find it amusing that Ms. Rowling and Mrs. Meyer share a publisher? (Hat tip to James for the links!)
I read that earlier. I’m really curious what the book will be like. I have a hard time thinking of Rowling as a writer of adult fiction. There is quite a lot of adult fiction out there that I refuse to read – ahem, I don’t need graphic descriptions of love scenes. So I hope she doesn’t go down that path. I also hope she isn’t going down the same path as Meyer, no offense intended to all those of you who like the Twilight books.
But I admit I am looking forward to learning more about the new book and I will likely buy it and give it a read. I enjoy her style and I hope she will carry that into whatever she writes – I would think that she would.
That’s really too ironic. Lots of adults read Harry Potter. They even produced special covers to let them off the hook. So, what’s more “adult”? – reading the books you like because they are great stories or reading off the prescribed book lists? Hmm. I recall they invented a new best seller list to attempt to force the distinction.
I’d read it. Just like I read CS Lewis’ Studies in Words or Introduction to paradise Lost. Though I met him as the author of the Narniad, he was a good writer!
Let’s see if Rowling does as well.
(And there was Dorothy L Sayers translation of the Divine Comedy after the Lord Peter Wimsey novels. Yep, lots of precedents!)
For me the last in the series, the Deathly Hallows, was the best Harry Potter novel, so on that basis there is no reason why Ms Rowling should not match the achievement.
Of course, it is hard to see how she could surpass what she has already done, so in that sense some ‘regression to the mean’ might be expected.
But Harry was conceived and planned very slowly and mostly before fame struck. I am concerned about the cumulative effects of fame on modern writers – especially in this era of political correctness (and bearing in mind JKRs reportedly close friendship with the UK’s egregious and unlamentedly ‘ex’ Prime Minister and crass ‘class warrier’ Gordon Brown).
Then there is the matter of writing an ‘adult novel’. I am of the opinion that pretty much all the good work has been done in the ‘genre’ fiction in recent decades (science fiction, fantasy, childrens’ and teen fiction etc), and ‘The Novel’ is at a low ebb: if JKR is intending to write the kind of novel that wins The Booker Prize then she will be very-hard pressed to produce anything worthwhile.
But then she is a proven genius who under incredible pressure managed to produce great literature, so all bets are off…
*
(Aside: I find the illustrating photograph almost painful to contemplate.
(I do wish she would accept that she is a middle aged women of pleasant but moderate natural looks – instead of trying technologically to resculpt herself as a ‘sex symbol’ of fifteen years younger. That attitude does not bode well, I fear.
(Can you imagine (as an equivalent) JRR Tolkien being photographed with ‘designer stubble’ and posing astride a motorbike wearing a leather jacket?…
(No, neither can I! – and that is all to the credit of the older writer. )
Inked…thank you for posting my thoughts before I could get them on the page! I, too, had a moment of reflection contemplating the difference between “the adult novel” and “the novel read by adults.” I love youth fiction…Rick Riordan, John Flanagan , and Suzane Collins are some of my favorite authors who capture my attention and keep me engrossed in the story. I recommend their works to our local middleschool and junior high teachers often.
I would add Christopher Paolini to the list, only for books 1-3 of the Inheritance saga: Book 4 just didn’t fill the bill! Same with Ally Condi’s “Matched”…loved the first book, tolerated the second, “Crossed.” IMO.
I think whatever the book ends up being, there is no possible way she can put as much love and time into it as she did Harry Potter. I suspect the Potter books were a comprehensive tour through her major and minor themes and contributions. I’m anticipatory, but not overly so. I learned well that over-hype always creates disappointment – just look at the Star Wars prequels.
My only thought is that I do hope that this book will at least be safe if a child happens to come across it. There’s a fair chance that a younger fan of the Harry Potter series will see it and think, “oooh! Something else by J.K. Rowling, let’s see…” I mean, adults read the Harry Potters, there’s a good chance that a child will try to read this. I’m just going to hope it doesn’t turn out like Twilight or something, but knowing Ms. Rowling, it will be good no matter what it is.
I’ll second Wispy’s comment that I hope the book will at least be safe for the young people who will undoubtedly want to read it, though I’m not sure I know what constitutes safety in this overexposed world.
And speaking of overexposure, Bruce Charlton’s comment on JKR’s dress is so right. I, too, found it painful to contemplate and if she has allowed herself to become a middle-aged fashion victim it does not bode well for her ‘adult’ novel.