26 August 2000

Dear Diary:

The worldwide Harry Potter tidal wave shows no sign of abating...only this afternoon I happened to read the comments on the back cover of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", and one of them said that J. K. Rowling was comparable to Roald Dahl. Now, that could mean Rowling was as good a writer as Dahl, but doesn't it also imply that the genre of fantasy is bigger than Rowling? After all, Dahl is the quintessential children's fantasy writer, whereas Rowling is comparatively new to the scene. Could it be that she had to be associated with Roald Dahl to get recognition? Oh, by the way, if you don't know about Harry Potter or J. K. Rowling, it probably means you're from another planet or something...or maybe you're guessing what I'm talking about based on your own experiences? Not that a diary would have any, of course...