It's An Epidemic!A few years back, when parents were growing tired of reading about Hobbits in the Shire, a new child fantasy/adventure book arose. Thus began the Potter craze. The story revolved around the magical journey of a prodigious child wizard complete with bookend friends and an arch-nemesis, Lord Valdimort. Parents were happy to find a new way to entice their children to read (not that Sesame Street and Nickolodeon didn't do its job). It also satiated the child market with stories that were equally as entertaining for the parents as say, Universal Studios or Disney World. It beats Chuckie Cheese and Dicovery Zone! So what if it happens to fill J.K. Rowling's pockets. So did the LOTR movies based on the works of Tolkien, but no one's talking about that now, are they? Let's face it: Potter encouraged children to learn about dealing with bullies, know-it-alls, and ogres (we've all dealt with these at one time or another). It also brought parents and children together in a culture where tv and PS2 are predominant distractions. That's not so bad. Is it?I've been writing for years, but my works aren't as unpredictable and thoroughly enjoyable. At least J.K. Rowling bridged the gap and managed to be successful at filling the bank account in the process.Maybe the explosion booming in the distance is the sound of all the shattered egos for not having been the first to pull it off.

Well said. I haven't read any of the books but I recently saw the first movie on TV and it was much better than I expected.

What I want to know, FCAre you a Griffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slitherin?