Harry Potter Smart Talk Paperback – September 1, 2010

I've read most of John Granger's books, and looked forward to this new one. This contains contributions by James Thomas, Travis Prinzi and John Granger, as well as participation by Amy Surgis in two of the PotterCasts included. There four PotterCasts in all, my favorite being on Luna. Each Potter Pundit has two chapters; my favorites include the one by James Thomas on forshadowing in the series, and John Granger's chapter on the relationship between history and the Potter books. Although some material is familiar to me, I learned lots of new things to give me pleasure, in both re-reading the series and further studies. I highly recommend this book.

As a Master's student starting my thesis on Harry Potter, this was definitely on my "To Read" list.The discussions within this book are both deep and intriguing. Each chapter brought new light to the Harry Potter series, giving Potterphiles ideas to explore the next time they read the series through.This is definitely a worthwhile read for any Potter fan.

As an academic (doctoral student) working in ancient literature (Ancient Near Eastern, Hebrew Bible), and an avid Potter fan since just before the release of book 5, Order of the Phoenix, I found this book really engaging.On the eve of the release of the final installment of the series (Deathly Hallows), my advice to friends online, who were in full blown mania trying to predict the outcome, was the same as some professors give to students before exams ... when you have studied till your eyes are bugging out, take a rest and relax: There is only so much analysis you can do, I said, and maybe a better way to pass the time and torture of waiting was to pick your favorite book, the one you find yourself laughing and smiling the most when you read it, and read it just to enjoy the story (personally, I must admit that Book 6, Half Blood Prince, on audio-book with Jim Dale reading the American version, has caused me to miss my exit on the interstate more than once).That is sort of how the conversations of the Potter Pundits flow. The content is deep, but the conversations are anything but bogged down. They remind me of the fact that I find just as much to identify with in Potter from having been young and excited about rock and roll, as I do from being older and studying the richness of literary traditions.The formal essays by the individual pundits are also excellent in the same way. They are fascinatingly informative and profoundly probing, but the writing style is lively and anything but dry. ... and these guys really know their stuff - not just what they bring from their respective academic fields, but also just about every detail there is to know from the Potter books.I highly recommend it.

If you've never heard the PotterCast discussions of the "Potter Pundits" (James Thomas, Travis Prinzi and John Granger) or read their various books, then Harry Potter Smart Talk is the book you want to read. The book contains transcripts from Potter Pundits segments from the PotterCast podcast (found on the Leaky Cauldron web site) and essays from upcoming books by each pundit. Harry Potter Smart Talk gives a sampling of how each of these experts presents their different perspectives with the added bonus of being able to see the interesting results of their combined interactions and collaboration. They cover subjects such as favorite characters, literary comparisons with classic novels, foreshadowing, and important names and dates in the series with a great balance of humor and insight. This book will give any lover of J.K. Rowling's best selling saga an understanding of the deeper meaning of the books and why they are so important to an entire generation of readers.

Not a fan. Although I love HP I think it was being analysed too much, like when a poet says 'the curtains were blue' and everyone over-analyses it. Maybe they just meant that the curtains were blue.