Tagged: jk rowling
Why is The Hunger Games so Popular?
Since it was announced that The Hunger Games would be made into a movie, the series has become even more popular than before. I don’t know about you, but ever since I wrote my piece on the allusions to the Roman Empire in The Hunger Games, I’ve been thinking about the series quite a bit. And with the movie release only yesterday, I have decided to examine the reasons behind the Hunger Games phenomenon.
1. Katniss is more of a unisex narrator.
Stephenie Meyers’ Twilight series was (and still is) popular, but it will never reach the popularity level of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series. Other than the quality of writing, the main difference is the target audience. Twilight appeals to women, both young and old, but that means it’s only targeting 50% of the population at most. This is because Bella Swan is a very helpless, extremely feminine protagonist that every girl wants to be. Harry Potter, on the other hand, appeals to far more than just 50% of the population because he is a boy, but he is not so overly masculine as to turn away girls.
Do you see what I’m getting at here? Generally speaking, protagonists must be written almost as if they are unisex if they are to achieve a high level of popularity. Katniss is a female protagonist, but she is far from a damsel in distress and her point of view is not so overtly feminine that it turns off male readers. And that simple fact is what contributes to the series’ immense popularity. Continue reading
My Favourite Heroes
While there is no shortage of heroes in history and adult fiction, strong male leads are increasingly difficult to find in the YA genre. Most young adult fiction is written by women for women, but there seems to be a growing trend in YA novels geared toward teenage boys. With writers like Rick Riordan, Eoin Colfer and Anthony Horowitz topping bestseller lists, one can only hope that soon boys will get the representation they deserve. Here is a list of my favourite YA heroes, in descending order.
1. Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.
You probably knew Harry Potter would feature somewhere on this list, didn’t you? Well, there are many reasons the most famous character in YA literature is my favourite hero, not the least of which is the fact that the Harry Potter series was one of the first YA series I read. Perhaps I am biased, but I can also justify my choice. No matter how many horrible things happen to him, no matter how awful things get, Harry perseveres. He does things 99% of teenagers would not be capable of doing; he shows courage he never knew he had. But he is not perfect and his friends are usually there to help him through the tough times. Harry is a flawed hero, which makes him my favourite. Continue reading