September 02, 2002
Harry Potter and the Vexing Publication Delays

Argh. According to this story, the next Harry Potter book won't be here until at least 2003, maybe later. The wait is killing me.

The good news is that kids haven't abandoned reading amid the delays, according to local librarians:


At the Houston Public Library, kids who are wild about Harry are also showing interest in classic fantasy authors such as Ursula K. LeGuin, Roald Dahl, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

Also popular right now are German author Cornelia Funke's Thief Lord (set in Venice, with orphans and a cruel aunt-uncle duo); Neil Gaiman's Coraline (about kids' souls getting trapped behind mirrors); and Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy.


That's great, but will someone please light a fire under JK Rowling's butt? I want to read book 5 before it's due to come out in the theaters, y'know?

Posted by Charles Kuffner on September 02, 2002 to Books
Comments

Hear, hear. I don't care if she's recently married; the honeymoon should be over, woman! Back to work!

Posted by: Linkmeister on September 2, 2002 7:16 PM

Be happy you're not a Diane Duane fan waiting for the fourth book of a series she satrted 20 years ago. You could be watching Rowling write formulaic Star Drek instead of working on Harry Potter like I am with Duane and the Door books.

Posted by: Ginger on September 3, 2002 12:50 PM

Ah, fellow sufferers.

I gave up waiting on Diane's books about that long ago, though. And I discovered Diana Wynne Jones instead, who is *wonderful*. Apparently, a lot of other kids have discovered DWJ after reading Rowling, too.

Posted by: Avedon on September 3, 2002 8:04 PM

Actually, I can't help feeling a little sympathy for Ms. Rowling. If the delay turns Pynchonesque, my sympathy will probably decline accordingly, but really -- writing a book is difficult enough, but when you have your publisher, the movie people, and the merchandisers (not to mention legions of fans) literally or figuratively standing around tapping your shoulder and saying "Is it done yet?" every ten minutes ... well, no pressure, eh?

Posted by: Karin on September 4, 2002 8:19 PM

Not to worry much longer...the last Trek book is going to the publisher shortly, and _The Door Into Starlight_ is in progress with an eye to finishing it this year.

Posted by: Diane Duane on February 3, 2003 12:03 PM

Not to worry much longer...the last Trek book is going to the publisher shortly, and _The Door Into Starlight_ is in progress with an eye to finishing it this year.

Posted by: Diane Duane on February 3, 2003 12:03 PM

Well, the problem with that is that I can barely remember the series, now, and the books were passed on to Kitten White when I moved. I hope I don't have to remember any names....

But I'm glad to hear you're back to it at last, hon.

Posted by: Avedon on February 3, 2003 4:45 PM

Diane, that's wonderful! I had given up, even after being one of the bunch on Fido-net that used to harass you about 'The Door Into Someday'. (Well worth the wait, by the way.)

Posted by: Kathy K on February 3, 2003 6:26 PM

I still have a book club omnibus around here somewhere...

Posted by: Mac Thomason on February 4, 2003 10:43 AM