On Friday evening I joined Bob Glass on the radio to talk about Harry Potter.
I start in about two-thirds through the first hour.
We also spent the entire second hour continuing our discussion (though with an occasional diversion).
Bob is a Potter virgin, so I summarized the major story arch for him and for listeners unfamiliar with the stories. We talked a lot about the anti-totalitarian political themes of the series. We also talked about the Christian criticisms of the books as well as the religious themes within them. (I also briefly summarized my view that the religious themes of the books are not very strong or pronounced.)
I had a lot of fun discussing the Potter books and movies with Bob. In general, Bob’s show is shaping up with good analysis of current events. You can check him out at BobGlassRadio.com. (He said he’d start updating his page more frequently and even start looking into Twitter.) The online feed works very well, so you can listen to his show 9-11 p.m. (mountain) anywhere in the world where internet is available.
Of course, if you’re interested in more of what I have to say about Harry Potter, check out my book and additional essays at ValuesOfHarryPotter.com.
Just an observation: At my booksignings at Colonial Williamsburg (and other venues), when I spot a likely Harry Potter fan (the Potter glasses are the usual tip-off), I ask him or her: How would you like to meet heroes who don’t need magic to fight their enemies?
That question invariably intrigues the person, enough to sample at my invitation the first pages of Sparrowhawk: Jack Frake. They’re hooked. They eventually read the whole series.
One of the many draws to the series is that I introduce the heroes when they’re 10-year-old boys, and over the course of 30 years (ending in the fall of 1775), readers see how their convictions, principles and love of freedom develop in the heroes, and what they do about them as boys all the way up to Bunker Hill and the explosive climax on the York River in Virginia.
Dina Federman will be reviewing Sparrowhawk for TOS. She contributed an essay to the Sparrowhawk Companion.
Ed Cline