Monday, December 25, 2006

potty christmas

In every one of us lies a Harry Potter fan, though, admittedly, it is more hidden in some people than in others. Being overtly one (and proud of it), I’ve decided it was time for me to provide some material to slake your (soon-to-be) insatiable interest in the Harry Potter world. Hence my idea of revealing my source of knowledge, namely the first and best site about our British hero: mugglenet.com. For more than 6 years now, the members of Mugglenet have dedicated themselves to the site to bring it the fame that is now his. JK Rowling has even awarded them a trophy on her website fan section, and the founder, Emerson , even had the honour of being granted an exceptional interview with our most beloved author.
Besides, the site is meritorious indeed, as it offers a whole array of entertaining features such as the wall of shame (hilarious comments and letters from Mugglenet visitors to the staff), very interesting name origins on an etymological basis , a true wand seller (no kidding!), funny song parodies and, above all, the world-famous editorials that Jo even praised on her website. These editorials are really amazing works from people hired by Mugglenet and who have come up with astonishing theories about practically everything in the Harry Potter books. My favourite editorials, i.e. those I find particularly thrilling, are collected under the name Spinner’s End (which might ring a bell to the most alert of us as being Snape’s hiding place and title of the 2nd chapter of HBP) and are written by a 46 year-old woman, which proves that Harry Potter books do not only attract children or spotty teenagers. Now I can already picture your dubious frowns at the pedagogical aspect of theories about fictional books but I can assure you that the editorials are wonderfully written AND under the form of ESSAYS (rings any bell?). That might indeed prove useful in a couple of months! Furthermore, reading the editorials is a great way to kill time during the bloc period in an intelligent manner and without feeling guilty (take my word for it)!
I might add that we lived a historical moment on December 21 (was I the only one to notice though?) when Jo released the title of her 7th book and by chance I was on Mugglenet that day, doing research for this very entry when I saw it. If you haven’t heard of it yet, I might advise you to go to her site, click on the pink rubber and follow the instructions as follows: 1) click the knob on the open door in the mirror to see the Christmas tree, 2) click on the top half of the main door to see a wreath; 3) click on top of the mirror to reveal garland, 4) click on the spider web next to the mirror, 5) click on the 4th chime in the window to find the key of the main door, 6) drag the key to the door knob to unlock the door, 7) the door opens to reveal a package, 8) when you click the bow, the package will open, 9) inside is a game of hangman you can play to guess the title of Book 7! The door to jk’s office seldom opens, so enjoy it because it might be the last time. Imagine the look of awe and admiration on the faces of your children in a few years when you tell them you have witnessed the release of the 7th title live!
Now the reason I waited so long to share this site with you becomes clear: this is my idea of a collective gift for Christmas, which btw allows me not to spend anything. Being students as well after all, you would know! Merry Christmas to all of you!

1 comment:

pierre-yves said...

hi,
for the release date, it's still unknown but some claim it might come out on the symbolycal date 07/07/2007, although we can't be sure till Jo says so.
i wouldn't mind going to England either but i think i'll just order it on Amazon.com, as i did for the 6th, that's also a fast way to get it before everyone :)
a word to the wise is enough!