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Speed Reader: Michiko Kakutani Reviews Harry Potter
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 19, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 19, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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What do we make of the fact that the NY Times book critic Michiko Kakutani purchased a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at a NYC bookstore yesterday and was able to sift through its 1.8 pounds to write a review in today's paper? There are no true spoilers, just confirmation that there is a fitting ending (but if you are worried about spoilers of any kind, don't read the blockquote):
J. K. Rowling’s monumental, spellbinding epic, 10 years in the making, is deeply rooted in traditional literature and Hollywood sagas — from the Greek myths to Dickens and Tolkien to “Star Wars.” And true to its roots, it ends not with modernist, “Soprano”-esque equivocation, but with good old-fashioned closure: a big-screen, heart-racing, bone-chilling confrontation and an epilogue that clearly lays out people’s fates.
Thank God - no Journey soundtrack! Though don't let that keep you enterprising kids from using "Don't Stop Believing" to make a Harry Potter video... oh, wait, Olbermann already did it.
The early sale of the final Harry Potter book has prompted American publisher Scholastic to pursue legal action against DeepDiscount.com and Levy Home Entertainment, as those retailers had shipped the book early. But we doubt that this will spoil the fun for all the Muggles looking to celebrate the book's release tomorrow night.
Tomorrow, starting at 5PM, Scholastic will open up Harry Potter Place (Mercer Street, between Prince and Spring Streets in Soho) where people can visit between 5PM and 11PM, see a Muggle Board and Whomping Willow, and mingle with wand-makers, magicians, jugglers and more. And there will even be a Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Knight Bus where visitors can create videos about the Harry Potter books; the bus will be parked outside 557 Broadway between 10AM and 6PM tomorrow.
There are tons of midnight Hary Potter parties: Here's the Barnes & Noble locator for them (the big one is at Union Square, with Jim Dale, who narrates the audio books), and info from Border's. Children's book shop Books of Wonder has a big event, too.
Are you heading to Harry Potter book parties tomorrow night? Or are you hitting the streets to find a coveted early copy?
Tagged
books
broadway
bus
children
culture
deathly hallows
entertainment
fun
harry potter
hollywood
kids
Mercer Street
michiko kakutani
ny times
nyc
people
prince
soho
spring
Spring Streets
star wars
Stop Believing
thank god
union square
video
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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