I started this site because I am sick of the ceaselessly glowing reviews and endless buzz about Harry Potter. I'm tired of the half-assed movies that capitalize on the books success. I'm tired of seeing Harry's face everywhere. I'm not afraid to say:
I HATE HARRY POTTER!
Okay, I don't really hate Harry, but I hate what Harry has become to the genre. I've been an avid fantasy fan for as long as I can remember, having read literally hundreds of fantasy books. So, naturally when I first heard about a new book called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, I eagerly picked it up. I cracked it open and was prepared to be mesmerized. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The book was merely a knockoff of so many other, BETTER, fantasy novels. I can conceive how people might feel attachment to Harry Potter, supposing they have never read the quality fantasy novels that permeate the literary world. It's like loving McDonalds because you've never had lobster.
Although I was underwhelmed by the first book, the buzz continued to grow, bubbling from critics lava-like and unstoppable, so I decided to continue reading the series. I have begrudgingly finished all six books and I have to say I disliked it more as the books went on. I started to notice a pattern in all the books: all the same lazy formulas, the same regurgitated plot points in every book, and the same useless tangents that don't relate to the rest of the book. People claim that these droll repetitions are part of the charm but it's just evidence that JK Rowling is out of touch with the roots she claims to have in the fantasy genre. After finishing the 6th book I felt lost in a sea of mediocrity, fueled by the Harry Potter craze that never seems to wane.
I have created this page in an effort to educate readers. I am happy that Harry Potter is encouraging people, especially children, to read and that this genre is getting some-well deserved attention. However, Harry Potter is not your only choice. The fantasy books listed here are rich, complicated, and most important, original. Many of them helped build the genre as we know it today. So, please, take some time and check out some of these books I have listed. If you want even MORE recommendations, feel free to email me.
Recommended Reading:
 The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe -The first published book in the classic Chronicles Of Narnia
series, 4 children enter the magical world of Narnia through a mirrored
wardrobe and find a magical world of fauns, witches, nymphs, dwarves
and talking animals. |
 A Wrinkle In Time
- Meg and Charles search for their missing father, guided by Mrs.
Whatsit, Mrs. Which & Mrs. Who the children travel to the planet of
Camazotz where they encounter an evil man with red eyes, known as The
Prime Coordinato. A true classic. |
 Coraline
- Written by master storyteller Neil Gaiman, Coraline is a young bored
girl who discovers that bricked-up wall behind a door in her flat leads
to another world, with another mother, and another father. |
 The Golden Compass - The first book in his epic Dark Materials trilogy,
Philip Pullman unlocks the door to a world parallel to our own, but
with a mysterious slant all its own. Dæmons and winged creatures live
side by side with humans, and a mysterious entity called Dust just
might have the power to unite the universes--if it isn't destroyed
first. |