Two developments in the J. K. Rowling universe this week will have far more impact on my life, and the lives of millions of others both born and unborn, than anything dressage horse owner and well documented dog abuser Willard “Mitt” Romney had to say about which side he’s on in the War on Women (WoW).
I say the J.K. Rowling universe because the first development has absolutely nothing to do with Harry Potter. When I first read this blurb for “The Casual Vacancy”: “When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early forties, the little town of Pagford is left in shock. Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils…Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the town’s council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?” I just assumed that poor Barry Fairweather was murdered. Snuffed. Whacked, as some Americans might say.
In any event, I certainly hope so. Otherwise, it could be a very dry British novel about people not getting along terribly well with their neighbors. Even the magical pen of Ms. Rowling might not be enough to make that work for me.
The other development is that Pottermore, the long awaited website for nerds like us, is finally open to the public, although somewhat scaled back from the Strawberry Fields style alternate reality we had hoped for.
I’ve signed up. Should be able to check it out in a day or two. I’ll let you know although, actually, my hopes are not set very high. The films were O.K., but they didn’t really knock me out. Really, their main function was that people who don’t read could still enjoy the story. I expect this website will be a lot more like the films than the books but I hope I’m wrong.
Anyway, I’ve read all the books and I’ve seen all the movies. So, there’s only one thing left to do. I’m going to Pottermore!
www.gurukalehuru.com 