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J.K. Rowling's reaction to negative reviews of her new (non-Harry Potter) book (crosspost from /r/reactiongifs (i.imgur.com)

submitted ago by mattXIXAccio Knowledge

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[–]DrConnery 53 points54 points ago

You have a bunch of Harry Potter fans reading her book with expectations. Regardless if they say they do or not. I'd like to hear the opinion from someone who isn't a fan of Harry Potter.

[–]Thermodynamo 19 points20 points ago

Do such people exist?

[–]riotingchimps 15 points16 points ago

in Narnia, yes.

[–]SawRubThe Wizard Baruffio 2 points3 points ago

Actually, after the White Witch was defeated, High King Peter Pevensie made sure that Harry Potter was read throughout Narnia, to quell the rising anti-witch sentiment. It's not ideal yet, but it has definitely gotten better.

And just to put your mind at ease, apart from the White Witch, no other witch has been harmed. The attempted witch-burning actually just gave them a slight tickling sensation.

[–]Choppa790 4 points5 points ago

Mormons and Fundamentalist Christians.

[–]TralanThat *is* a banana in my pocket. 2 points3 points ago

That's not true. I know many a Momo fan of Harry Potter.

[–]Choppa790 0 points1 point ago

I'm speaking from my own experience.

[–]SawRubThe Wizard Baruffio 0 points1 point ago

I can see an attack ad coming out saying that if Romney is elected, Harry Potter will be banned. If that doesn't get the youngsters to vote, I don't know what will.

[–]notpandora -2 points-1 points ago

There are adults who do not believe in Sky Dad who do not like Harry Potter. It may be hard to understand, but they exist.

[–]Choppa790 2 points3 points ago

Those are adults that are probably "too good to read a children's book". My aunt got me Harry Potter from when she visited Spain and she recommends me good books all the time. I just know for a fact (I live in Texas) that christian fundies are more likely to ban or prohibit Harry Potter, despite its many Christian themes.

I also had a mormon friend in high school that did not read the book or watch anything higher than pg-13.

[–]Thermodynamo 0 points1 point ago

hahaha...this took me a minute but...Sky Dad = God?

[–]notpandora 0 points1 point ago

Yes, Sky Dad. He's old, he punishes you when you're bad, forgives you when you're sorry, and he lives on a cloud in the sky. Although now Christian Sky Dad is starting to look like Deadbeat Sky Dad, he's missed a few child support payments. Okay, enough of that. Not on /r/harrypotter to get into this type of thing.

[–]saturatedamandaNargles 0 points1 point ago

At my school, they do.

[–]DrConnery 1 point2 points ago

probably not

[–]WC_CowponyTujours Badjour 64 points65 points ago

Maybe she would have been better sticking to a fantasy theme. Not necessarily Harry Potter, but fantastical in some way. Still, regardless of the quality of her new book, good on her for stretching herself and taking a risk. Too many people stick with what they know and don't challenge themselves. Better to challenge yourself and fail than to live a safe and unchallenged life.

[–]RuchWOpen at the Close 8 points9 points ago

Exactly what I was thinking. Harry Potter has awarded her the luxury of being able to dabble in whatever the hell she wants. This is what she wanted to do, so be it. With that being said, I hope she does do some fantasy writing. It'd be great if she could create another universe akin to Harry Potter.

[–]colonelsmaash 25 points26 points ago

I don't tend to listen to critics. I usually find i disagree with them anyway. So this wouldn't stop me reading JKR's new book.

[–]tavronlee 14 points15 points ago

I find the critics system only works for me if I'm only mildly interested in a book to begin with. If I'm already invested in it, I won't give a damn what critics say one way or another. It's JK Rowling, I would read this book even if people said it was worse than 50 Shades of Grey.

[–]Gepettolufkin 4 points5 points ago

I like it a lot so far.

[–]Illivah 4 points5 points ago

critics are decent for sorting out the trully horrible things in life I think. They read and listen to trully horrible things, full of grammar mistakes, shallow ideas, and things made in 5 minutes, all so we don't have to.

By the time it gets to us, it has come down to details of preference, so I can safely ignore the rest of their opinion.

[–]Gexus 11 points12 points ago

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Casual_Vacancy#Reception

I dunno. Has it really been getting that negative reviews?

[–]ManWhoSoldTheWorld 10 points11 points ago

All of the reviews I've read have been either mixed or mildly positive. The consensus seems to be that it's a pretty good novel:a bit slow to start and certainly not a modern masterpiece, but entertaining and worth a read.

[–]smoothcam72 11 points12 points ago

JK should have a tea with Bob Dylan, he experienced similar disdain. I cannot fathom the arrogance of the fans who whine that she should write what they want her to write.

[–]JAMIEInc 11 points12 points ago

I hate how every critic, even the positive ones, have compared The Casual Vacancy to Harry Potter. The two series are completely separate ends of the scale.

It's obvious that anything JK releases will be compared to Harry Potter, as that is the thing that boosted her career as a writer. I just hate that every negative review has said "Well, it's no Harry Potter". I'm like "Well of course it isn't! It's not titled Harry Potter and the Casual Vacancy!"

I'm currently reading it, and I've found it pretty good so far. The writing is just as good as it was in Harry Potter, and past the first few chapters the story starts getting immersive.

[–]iamarobotb[Legilimens] 1 point2 points ago

And you can see Jo's funny side again, a little bit drier and darker maybe :)

[–]Hazlzz 27 points28 points ago

Am I the only one who honestly isn't that surprised at this?

[–]uberguby 58 points59 points ago

One time an interviewer said to Joseph Heller "You've never written anything as good as Catch 22."

Heller responded with "Who has?"

[–]animevamp727 1 point2 points ago

JK Rowling?

[–]uberguby 2 points3 points ago

The point being, if J.K. Rowling wrote dog shit for the rest of her life, it wouldn't matter, because she wrote harry potter.

[–]animevamp727 1 point2 points ago

i get that, i was joking.

[–]uberguby 0 points1 point ago

Oh.... uh... cool.

[–]Second_FoundationeerPure of Heart is Pure of Blood 13 points14 points ago

To be honest, she should have tried a different pen-name. It would have let her know if people like her work for her writing, or lessen the expectations people would have had for her.

[–]evilpenguin234 28 points29 points ago

Horrible Twist: She already did, under the name E L James. 50 Shades was a huge hit.

[–]iamarobotb[Legilimens] 9 points10 points ago

D:

[–]Thermodynamo 2 points3 points ago

BUT, money.

[–]Second_FoundationeerPure of Heart is Pure of Blood 1 point2 points ago

Bah, she's already rich as hell from Harry Potter. I think her reputation as an author is more important now that she's not barely scraping by..

[–]chipmunkonspeed 4 points5 points ago

probably not. I saw an interview she did with nightline a couple days ago, and I don't think she really cares if you like it or you don't- just as long as you feel for it.

[–]kinyutakaRavenclaw Forever 7 points8 points ago

Harry Potter fan here, but frankly bored with Casual Vacancy. Thankfully Google offers the first few chapters for free, so if you want to see for yourself, go for it.

But seriously, how many chapters can they spend saying someone died before they move the plot along?

[–]iLike_KittehsEaster Holiday 30 points31 points ago

Have you READ Ulysses?

[–]kinyutakaRavenclaw Forever -1 points0 points ago

Not that I can recall. I like reading, but there are a lot of books I've never read.

[–]ManWhoSoldTheWorld 8 points9 points ago

It's a pretty famous novel, lauded by critics but notoriously difficult to read. Not that you should be ashamed for not having heard of it, just as an fyi.

[–]kinyutakaRavenclaw Forever 0 points1 point ago

I admit I kicked myself when I looked it up. But it doesn't look like my kind of book.

[–]HarrietPotter[The Girl Who Lived] 4 points5 points ago

But seriously, how many chapters can they spend saying someone died before they move the plot along?

This is J K Rowling, remember how many chapters she spent telling us the Dursleys are "normal"?

[–]thefizzingwhizzbee 8 points9 points ago

1?

[–]HarrietPotter[The Girl Who Lived] 3 points4 points ago

Exactly. That is a lot of pages to describe something absolutely commonplace.

[–]thefizzingwhizzbee 3 points4 points ago

Not really. It becomes very important later in the series.

[–]notpandora 3 points4 points ago

Maybe I'm an anomaly but the Dursley chapters are some of my favorites.

[–]HarrietPotter[The Girl Who Lived] 3 points4 points ago

I enjoyed them in the sense that they were funny and insightful, but I also think they were unnecessarily long-winded.

[–]kinyutakaRavenclaw Forever 1 point2 points ago

Agreed, but in Casual Vacancy, she seems to be using "He's dead!" as a method of introducing all the characters of the book at once, and I'm screaming, "Just get on with it!"

In Harry Potter, she didn't bore me with the Dursleys. In fact, they were so normal it was funny.

[–]sonoviva[La Principessa Mezzosangue] 3 points4 points ago

I usually hate the shit that critics like, so I'm excited to read this now.

[–]Superduperdoop 8 points9 points ago

I wouldn't count this as a win then, the book has gotten rave reviews from pretty much everyone.

[–]poolboywax 0 points1 point ago

this is how i feel about working all the time and not having the time to be in an dating relationship where i can see the other person on a regularly.

[–]RivetheadGirlMediwitch in Training 1 point2 points ago

I think the problem is that while she was writing harry potter she didn't venture out. She also could have taken the time to write more books while the movies were in production.

Look at Stephen king. He is know for his Dark Tower series, but wrote dozens of books between them. Some tie in obviously and some don't at all.

This was her first book outside of the series. If she really wants to get away from it, its probably going to come down to the volume of interdependent stories she can actually produce.

[–]rmw6190 1 point2 points ago

I didnt buy this book yet, mainly because barnes and nobles has it for like 40 dollars.

[–]Raffo54Rouge Bludger 0 points1 point ago

If I was ever put off by critics, I would read nothing, watch nothing on TV and most likely never ever go to the cinema.

[–]disinteressant 0 points1 point ago

I think it's a good novel. The story/plotting is where it shines, as with Potters, even if the language has evolved from HP7, as it tends to do for most writers every book they write. But this is not for kids (obviously) or anyone who expects a novel to bring a feeling of happiness or end happily. This is a very different Rowling from the one people know... This book didn't make me feel any good, and left a sad and disturbed aftertaste. Nothing wrong with that, of course. I'm glad she didn't use a pen name, it was brave to do it as herself.

[–]OptimusDimebagRoonil Wazlib -2 points-1 points ago

This really isn't HP related. There is a subreddit for the Casual Vacancy that would be better suited for this.

[–]ToasterMic 0 points1 point ago

I didn't buy it personally. I didn't want to read a book about an English local council election with black humor. Sounded really dull.

[–]ManWhoSoldTheWorld 15 points16 points ago

I think its fair to say that a lot of people don't want to read a book about an English local council election with black humor. I'm guessing that she wrote it for those who do.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]AccioInternetsHead of Slytherin (on sabbatical) 41 points42 points ago

Does Anne Rice only write about vampires and their world? Did Douglas Adams only write about hitchhiking around the universe?

Why should JK Rowling not be allowed to grow as a writer?

[–]ragged-claws 4 points5 points ago

Anne Rice is maybe a bad example. What else has she written? Other than erotica and weird Jesus fanfiction.

[–]redfroggyof the Noble House of Black 7 points8 points ago

Actually I think that makes her a perfect example. Her retelling of Sleeping Beauty is about as far from vampires as you can get. She also wrote books about witches and mummies too. Note: the Mummy or Ramses the Damned is a darn good book!

[–]ragged-claws 0 points1 point ago

Thank you for making me wiki the series to check if my assertion was unfounded. From my second-hand knowledge, I just kind of figured the plot itself would be similar--a tale of licentious and glamorous angst-ridden indulgence wrapped up in a sexy mythology.

Then I found this: "In the castle Beauty meets another slave, Prince Alexi, with whom she copulates passionately." From now on, "enact passionate copulation" is going to be my stand-in for the phrase, "making love."

[–]AccioInternetsHead of Slytherin (on sabbatical) 1 point2 points ago

Lives of the Mayfair Witches, which I absolutely love. But then she did crossovers from the Mayfair Witches to Vampires, and they were horrible. And a bunch of random books, no series. She just came out with one a few months ago called The Wolf Gift.

[–]ragged-claws 0 points1 point ago

EDIT to be more polite.

Her sister wrote a series about werewolves which I found to be similar in tone if not in style to The Vampire Chronicles. And thank you, I wasn't aware that the Mayfair Witches books started out as a separate series; my first exposure was one of those crossover books.

[–]WasteOfFrog -2 points-1 points ago

Both of those authors stay pretty firmly in their own Genres. Anne Rice's works are nearly all fantasy and Douglas Adams are sci-fi.

[–]AccioInternetsHead of Slytherin (on sabbatical) 2 points3 points ago

Just because it's in the same genre does not mean that it's not a completely different story and world. There are probably very few authors that write - successfully- in more than one or two categories.

[–]WasteOfFrog -1 points0 points ago

That's exactly what I'm implying. Writing in multiple genres is hard, and for the most part, unwelcomed by the readers. That's why most authors stick to what they are good at.

[–]blitzbom 12 points13 points ago

I understand where you're coming from, I would LOVE more Harry Potter. But one of the reviews on her new book that I saw said basically "JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter. This isn't Harry Potter. I don't like it because it's not Harry Potter, which the author also wrote."

Every Potter fan in the world wants more Harry Potter. We loved it, it shaped who we are. But lets give the new book a chance. I haven't started reading it yet, but I'm looking forward to see what she can do in a different world with more adult material.

[–]TwistTurtle 5 points6 points ago

And no doubt you can't watch films starring the main Potter actors for similar reasons. You're the bane of everyone who wants to express themselves creatively.

[–]legendaris 20 points21 points ago

"It's better to burn out than to fade away" - K.Cobain

Seriously, I'm kinda glad she decided to not write another Potter-universe book.

[–]mechesh 8 points9 points ago

I think that line was in Highlander before K. Cobain said it.

[–]adouchebagEat Slugs! 17 points18 points ago

It's originally from a Neil Young song, Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black).

[–]mechesh 2 points3 points ago

TIL.

[–]unicornshoes 4 points5 points ago

I think you're getting down voted because you said

I'm so disappointed that she didn't choose to do something not involving Harry in the Harry Potter universe.

I think you meant:

I'm so disappointed that she didn't choose chose to do something not involving Harry in the Harry Potter universe.

or

I'm so disappointed that she didn't choose to do something not involving Harry in the Harry Potter universe.

The way that particular sentence was worded before made it sound like you were disappointed she wrote in the HP universe again...

edit- spelling

[–]WollyGog 1 point2 points ago

I think they're getting downvoted because they spelt "disappointed" wrong.

[–]unicornshoes 0 points1 point ago

Whoops, I see that now. It was early in the morning when I first commented, 8am classes and such.

[–]WollyGog 1 point2 points ago

Late afternoon here, and you did directly quote them, so no need to correct the comment!

[–]OhHowDroll 7 points8 points ago

Guys, downvoting isn't for disagreeing with the poster. I get it, you want to defend J.K. Rowling, but the guy's allowed to be of the opinion that he'd prefer another book set in the HP universe.

[–]TwistTurtle 2 points3 points ago

He's allowed to be of that opinion, and we're allowed to call him the moron he is for having such an opinion.

[–]OhHowDroll 1 point2 points ago

Right, but people aren't using their words to do so, they're using the downvote function.

[–]bugses101Can I Slyther-in? 1 point2 points ago

I haven't really heard many negative reviews, has it been getting dogged? I'm in the middle of Clash of Kings right now, but I really want to read The Casual Vacancy when I'm done.

[–]Rustash 0 points1 point ago

Are you me? What did I tell you about making other Reddit accounts without telling me?!

[–]HolyDuckRaves 2 points3 points ago

A fellow asoiaf fan!

[–]blitzbom 0 points1 point ago

Could you imagine what would happen if G.R.R.M helped write Harry Potter? I don't think my heart could take it.

[–]HolyDuckRaves 1 point2 points ago

There was a thread imagining precisely this on /r/asoiaf. That was how I read a massive ADWD spoiler though, so don't read it until you've finished :D

[–]blitzbom 0 points1 point ago

Thanks for the heads up for both the link and the spoiler alert. I bookmarked the page cause I haven't finished ADWD yet.

[–]HolyDuckRaves 0 points1 point ago

No worries, deffo give it a read, it's awesome :D

[–]monopolyman900 1 point2 points ago

weird, these are the 2 books I'm reading right now too

[–]Cure_my_AdditionAfraid of Bees 1 point2 points ago

At least on Amazon, a lot of the customer reviews are people complaining about the price. I haven't seen critics reviews though. I agree that she should've used a penname. I feel people are going to judge it harsher considering who she is.

[–]MikeMasowski -2 points-1 points ago

Just me expecting a gift of Jo herself?If she made her own version of this gift that would be brilliant though..

[–]Tisatalks 4 points5 points ago

gif

[–]MikeMasowski 0 points1 point ago

Autocorrect on my phone...

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