Page and screen: It’s a very Harry world

Purvi Thacker,
Address not given

The Harry Potter films are drawing children away from books. Youngsters now want to watch the movies instead of reading the books, which might take weeks. Those who used to read the books have stopped doing so, thinking that it is better to watch the films, when they release. If this trend continues, children will lose touch with the written word.

Vinay dokania,
Howrah

Harry Potter has not been able to take children back to books. Although thousands of copies of the Harry Potter novels are sold every year, young people prefer to watch the story unfold on the silver screen. It is a fact that the visual depiction is more appealing to children, most of whom don?t read a great deal anyway.

Poushali Chakraborty,
Sodepur

Yes, to a certain extent. But the young generation is reading only the bestsellers from the West. Equally good Indian fantasy novels are neglected due to lack of glamour and publicity. Otherwise, Thakurmar Jhuli would have been as appealing as Harry Potter.

Arjun Chaudhuri,
Mohesh Chaudhuri Lane

Despite the invasion of video and computer games, children remain addicted to detective and adventure books. Comic strips have also remained a perennial favourite, even though there are 24-hour animation channels. Harry Potter books have been blessed with extensive media coverage, but it would be a gross exaggeration to say that they have made children take up books again.

Tapan Pal,
Batanagar

Definitely. It is heartening to see children read brick-sized volumes, ignoring the various forms of electronic entertainment. The books ignite their imagination, whereas the films and cartoons leave little to imagination. With the habit of book-reading developing, we can be sure that one day these children will, at least out of curiosity, try Dostoevsky or Kalidas. May be, they will even write the classics of the 21st century.

Potteramania has a moral for the vernacular publishing houses. Instead of complaining about the shrinking market, they should try to be creative.

Boolbool Chaudhuri,
Salt Lake

Not at all. Enid Blyton?s works and Mills & Boons volumes were equally popular, and just as forgettable. These books will not kindle any special love for the printed word. Fans of the Harry Potter books are just as fond of the Harry Potter computer games and films. Besides, there are lots of children who adore Harry Potter without reading any of the books on him. And the majority have read Harry Potter, but not the timeless children?s classics.

Samyak Nandy,
Bangur Avenue

Yes, Harry Potter has taken children back to books. Not only do kids queue up to collect Harry Potter books, but they also finish them in the blink of an eye. The craze is such that they have to buy the book the day it is put on sale. In fact, the Harry Potter novels have taken a lot of older people back to books as well.

Iindranil Sanyal,
Dhakuria

There was a dearth of modern literary classics for kids, and Harry Potter has plugged the gap. In the process, they have reignited children?s interest in reading, which is no mean task, given the burden of studies.

Ankhi Mukherjee,
Address not given

We cannot say that Harry Potter has taken children back to books, since the youngsters who used to read still do so. It hardly matters to them whether they are reading Harry Potter or Enid Blyton. There is, of course, another group who read only Harry Potter and nothing else. So it cannot be said that the novels on the young wizard have made them interested in reading in general.

Swarnali Biswas,
Address not given

The craze around Harry Potter books can be totally attributed to media hype. Some youngsters have started reading the books after watching the films, but their number is not significant. Harry Potter alone cannot bring an entire generation back to books.

Uujjal Bhattacharyya,
CIT Road

The question assumes that children had gone away from books, which is not true. The attractions of electronic media had temporarily diverted their attention, but the publishers of the Harry Potter series have successfully recaptured their target customers. The Harry Potter novels constitute only a portion of the reading list of young people.

Payel Bhattacharyya,
Joka

It is true that children are attracted to the Harry Potter books. But that does not imply that they had stopped reading books earlier. Look at the number of youngsters who make it to the book fair every year. Even after the final Harry Potter book is published, children will continue to read.