World Famous Comics: The Hidden Key to Harry Potter: Understanding the Meaning, Genius, and Popularity of Joanne Rowling's Harry Potter Novels
The Hidden Key to Harry Potter: Understanding the Meaning, Genius, and Popularity of Joanne Rowling's Harry Potter Novels
By: John Granger Publisher: Zossima Press Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Zossima Press Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 384 Publication Date: November 18, 2002
Product Description: What you need to know about The Hidden Key to Harry Potter:
1) It is the first critical study to unlock the inner meaning of Harry Potter by treating the series seriously as literature along the lines of Charles Dickens and Jane Austen.
2) It is the first exposé to identify Joanne Rowling as a Christian who consciously writes Christian Fantasy in the tradition of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien.
3) It is the first full-fledged effort to predict Potter’s future course in detail – an audacious and thought-provoking adventure offered to fellow enthusiasts.
4) It is the first Muggle textbook suitable for use at Hogwarts – bringing humor, fun, and WOW! excitement to the "serious" business of Pottermania.
Low Road critics have panned the bestselling Harry Potter novels as "the literary equivalent of fast food" and as a gateway to the occult. But no one has explained the worldwide popularity of Ms. Rowling’s fiction or read it as one would read Tolkien, Hemingway, or Shakespeare. The Hidden Key takes the High Road to understanding Harry Potter’s success, through an exploration of the series’ structure, themes, and symbolism.
The astonishing conclusion of this investigation is that Ms. Rowling, demonized by some Christian critics because of the magical setting of her books, is ironically writing the most charming and challenging Christian fiction for children since Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia. The Hidden Key demonstrates that all the Potter books teach Christian doctrines - sometimes with subtlety, often baldly - in their plot, imagery, and character development. Lambasted by critics who have not read her books closely or are unfamiliar with traditional Christian literature, Ms. Rowling’s genius has been overlooked despite her books’ success.
A lover and teacher of the Great Books – including the great children’s books he reads his seven children – Mr. Granger applies his knowledge of classical philosophy and Christian traditions to reveal the secret message that explains the magic power of Harry Potter.
Find out these secrets inside:
* What is the hidden key to Harry Potter? * Is Harry’s magic dangerous – or quite the opposite? * What is the evidence that Rowling is a Christian novelist? * Is the author an "Inkling"? How have we been so bamboozled? * Who is the real-world model for Gilderoy Lockhart? * Who is Harry, really? Why does Lord Voldemort want him dead? * Will Wormtail kill Voldemort as Wormtongue killed Saruman? * What may happen in the upcoming Potter books? * How does it all end? – an UNAUTHORIZED prediction.
Thought Provoking but Needs Typist This book has some great thought provoking ideas but these are masked by the many typos throughout. In one particular paragraph the 9 errors caught were extremely distracting. It is ashame the errors are so much, I think this book could be taken very seriously if it was edited better.
I love the diagrams and maps throughout the book, they really helped to illustrate the points. His view on the topic of Harry and religion is interesting. It has helped me in my constant defense for the books (against Christian friends, family, and neighbors). I think in a couple of sections, though, he pushes the envelope a tad too far and some areas seem like rambling. It is in need of better organization, in some spots I felt like I was reading a high school research paper.
All in all a good read...but requires patience!
The "Hidden Key" Revealed by Sound Scholarship Anyone interested in digging deeper into the richness and multi-layered meaning of the Harry Potter books will be well rewarded by reading The Hidden Key to Harry Potter. Far from mere fantasy books for children, or, even more erroneous, books glorifying "witchcraft", the stories are revealed to be carefully planned, researched, and written according to the traditions which enrich all outstanding fiction. J.K. Rowling's education and literary influences are carefully delineated and applied to the critique of each of her novels; and, if the author (John Granger) occasionally goes into bewildering detail about some little known, but vital, subject such as alchemy, a careful reading of the material will reward the reader interested in literary history, the meaning of symbols, and the sources for a vast deal of Rowling's symbology. She is shown to be applying once well-known symbols with care and deliberation to support her themes; in other words, much of what the reading public has assumed was "made up" by a writer with a fertile imagination is demonstrated to be well-established historical and literary lore which other, highly gifted writers before her have employed with great success. While some of Granger's interpretations may seem a bit of a stretch--and he admits that a certain amount of speculating and educated guesswork enters into his critique--enough of it is so convincing and holds together so well that his theories come across as the best of explanations going for the popularity of these novels. While out of print, "Hidden Key" is a real treasure for Harry Potter fans; much of its content has been rewritten in Granger's current book, "Finding God in Harry Potter." A scholarly book, richly rewarding and wonderfully researched.
Magic and Meaning Responses to Harry Potter range from simple, uncluttered enthusiasm to pompous critiques and even outraged disdain. John Granger's book The Hidden Key to Harry Potter is a highly personal, but well-read and creatively argued case for viewing JK Rowling's work as part of the High Road tradition of symbolic Christian literature, perhaps best known in Lewis' Narnia Chronicles. The Hidden Key is a must-read for any serious Harry Potter fan, or indeed any serious reader of fiction. What I love about it is its combination of solid research and personal conviction, a rare marriage nowadays. It reads like the work of a human being who stands for something, something of which I suspect Ms Rowling, and Harry, would approve. http://bookwormclub.blogspot.com
Analyze this? This is a meaningless attempt to find meaning in works of fiction by attempting to psychoanalyze the author, her readers and the fictional characters. Too dry and boring for younger readers and adults alike. This appears to be nothing more than an attempt to make more money off the Harry Potter craze.
Entertaining and Enlightening This is a great book that dives into some of the nuances of the Harry Potter series. It goes into a very supportive and in depth literary analyses of why Harry Potter is such an awesome series: Rowling's uses of symbolism, freedom of choice, and various other themes riddle throughout the first four books. He defends it as a literary work against the detractors of the Potter series and does a very good job at it. If you want to dig a little into the deeper meanings that can be found in Harry Potter, this is a good book for anyone. Just be careful. Because Granger wrote it before Order of the Phoenix, some of his predictions about what's going to happen in the future do get a bit silly, and sometimes preposterous. But, hey, this was before the public was graced with book 5.
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