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Re: International Harry Potter Day

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On Tue, 5 May 2026 07:30:10 -0400, The True Melissa
<thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:

>Verily, in article <6gsivk5esvnt4kcj9c3n3smq02lhpnmbe5@4ax.com>, did 
>hayesstw@telkomsa.net deliver unto us this message:
>> 
>> On Mon, 4 May 2026 13:51:19 -0400, The True Melissa
>> <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>[snip]
>
>> >It's been said that the books grew up with the readers. The first one is 
>> >readable by younger kids and uses simple strokes (the Dursleys might as 
>> >well be cartoons). They get longer, more complex, and more nuanced as 
>> >they go.
>> >
>> >If that's intentional, I suppose future readers should limit themselves 
>> >to one per year (or start later). 
>> 
>> Yes, it's quite intentional -- unlike Enid Blyton characters like the
>> Famous five or the Secret Seven, or Billy Bunter, who never got older,
>> the characters we follow the characters in the Harry Potter books
>> through their school careers, and they change as they grow older. 
>> 
>> And yes, you can see on the shelf how the books get longer with every
>> school year they cover. But I'm not sure that the added length made
>> them any better. 
>
>Orson Scott Card did something similar in his Ender series. In the first 
>one, Peter is a sadistic psychopath. It turns out that this is simply 
>how little Ender sees him.
>
>I'm not sure how well this works. I like to be able to rely on the 
>narration -- the unreliable narrator is great for atmostphere or a 
>killer twist, but it shouldn't be the default. If Peter tortured 
>squirrels as a boy, as the narrative says he did, then he should have 
>more serious issues later in life. Similarly, if the Dursleys are so 
>fairytale evil that they make Harry live in a cupboard, then it's odd 
>that they later behave more humanly. 
>
>I always thought the books were too hard on the Dursleys, but it still 
>seemed like a change in the world when Dudley Dursley, of all people, 
>started being nice and reasonable. 
>
>I wonder if anyone out there has done a decent fanfic of Dudley's 
>perspective. 

I have written a couple of books, also for kids, roughly the level of
Harry Potter 1 & 2, in which at least one of the villains, partly as a
result of events in the story, becomes a nicer person. I've been
working on a spin-off in which those events are told from his point of
view.

If such a thing might interest you, see here:

<https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1072405>

or here:

<https://www.amazon.com/Enchanted-Grove-Stephen-Hayes-ebook/dp/B08Y3RGLDR>

For the opposite effect, check the "Flashman" books, in which the
villain of "Tom Brown's Schooldays" is followed in his adult life,
where he is what his contemporaries would have called a bounder and a
cad. 
-- 
Stephen Hayes, Author of The Year of the Dragon
Sample or purchase The Year of the Dragon: 
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/907935
Web site: http://www.khanya.org.za/stevesig.htm
Blog: http://methodius.blogspot.com
E-mail: shayes@dunelm.org.uk or if you use Gmail hayesstw@telkomsa.net

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International Harry Potter Day David Dalton <dalton@nfld.com> - 2026-05-02 01:42 -0230
  Re: International Harry Potter Day doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca (The Doctor) - 2026-05-02 04:14 +0000
  Re: International Harry Potter Day The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> - 2026-05-02 11:10 -0400
    Re: International Harry Potter Day Bobbie Sellers <bliss-sf4ever@dslextreme.com> - 2026-05-02 19:28 -0700
    Re: International Harry Potter Day Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> - 2026-05-03 15:09 +1200
    Re: International Harry Potter Day Steve Hayes <hayesstw@telkomsa.net> - 2026-05-03 19:59 +0200
      Re: International Harry Potter Day Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> - 2026-05-04 09:26 -0700
        Re: International Harry Potter Day The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> - 2026-05-04 13:51 -0400
          Re: International Harry Potter Day Steve Hayes <hayesstw@telkomsa.net> - 2026-05-05 06:36 +0200
            Re: International Harry Potter Day The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> - 2026-05-05 07:30 -0400
              Re: International Harry Potter Day David Dalton <dalton@nfld.com> - 2026-05-05 10:27 -0230
                Re: International Harry Potter Day The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> - 2026-05-05 09:37 -0400
                Re: International Harry Potter Day David Dalton <dalton@nfld.com> - 2026-05-05 18:09 -0230
              Re: International Harry Potter Day Steve Hayes <hayesstw@telkomsa.net> - 2026-05-05 15:03 +0200
                Re: International Harry Potter Day The True Melissa <thetruemelissa@gmail.com> - 2026-05-05 09:39 -0400
                Re: International Harry Potter Day Bobbie Sellers <bliss-sf4ever@dslextreme.com> - 2026-05-05 09:30 -0700
        Re: International Harry Potter Day Cryptoengineer <petertrei@gmail.com> - 2026-05-04 22:55 -0400
          Re: International Harry Potter Day ted@loft.tnolan.com (Ted Nolan <tednolan>) - 2026-05-05 03:01 +0000
      Re: International Harry Potter Day "Michael F. Stemper" <michael.stemper@gmail.com> - 2026-05-05 08:13 -0500
        Re: International Harry Potter Day Steve Hayes <hayesstw@telkomsa.net> - 2026-05-06 06:17 +0200
          Re: International Harry Potter Day "Michael F. Stemper" <michael.stemper@gmail.com> - 2026-05-06 09:11 -0500
            Re: International Harry Potter Day Dimensional Traveler <dtravel@sonic.net> - 2026-05-06 17:55 -0700
          Re: International Harry Potter Day Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> - 2026-05-06 09:18 -0700

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