J. K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter [Hardcover]

Marc Shapiro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2001

The fascinating and heartwarming true story of one of the world's most beloved authors. In this inspiring book, fans of the Harry Potter series get to see their favourite author as who she really is. The J.K. Rowling story is a wonderful chance for adults and children to enjoy a heartwarming story together.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6-This book has just one thing going for it. It's the first biography for youngsters about the popular author. The only other sources of information are articles in newspapers, magazines, and on the Internet. Unfortunately, the text reads like a rough draft of a junior-high research paper. Incomplete and fragmented sentences abound as Shapiro rambles on in a confusing manner. Quotations are loosely traced to articles and interviews in their sentences, but are not properly documented ("'It was a little like having the Beatles here,' said an excited, out-of-breath bookstore representative to Entertainment Weekly after the event"). The author writes in absolutes without noting sources, e.g., "Her eyes were always wide in amazement at the world around her-." Events appear out of nowhere as if they'd been previously mentioned. It's a shame that the book is too inaccurate, unsubstantiated, and poorly written to be suitable for research purposes. Do your kids a favor and direct them to Scholastic's Web site (scholastic.com) for information on Rowling.
Kathleen Simonetta, Indian Trails Public Library District, Wheeling, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. This is a cut-and-paste job with a couple of glaring errors. But at the moment, there are only one or two books available on Rowling, and older kids won't be ashamed to carry around this book (actually published by an adult imprint) because of its paperback format. The fact of the matter is that Rowling's life was not all that interesting until she started writing about Harry: normal upbringing, a graduate of Exeter University, a year in Paris, a string of undistinguished jobs, and a brief marriage, which left her with a daughter. The book must have been in production before the name of the most recent Harry Potter was changed from the Doomspell Tour nament to Goblet of Fire , but the mistake will jump out at readers. There also seem to be missteps in the chronology. Keep this for report writers and Harry lovers until something better comes along, which should be soon. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Thorndike Pr (March 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786232250
• ISBN-13: 978-0786232253
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,040,140 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars An Amateur Approach, August 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: J. K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter (Paperback)

Marc Shapiro takes just over 100 pages to say what many authors have said much better in biographical information recounted in magazine articles. The facts are bungled in details from the books which makes me question the facts about J. K. Rowling's life. Were those bungled as well?

Clearly the book went to press prior to the time when the name of the Fourth Harry Potter Book was officially released because it refers to that book in it's working title. However the last couple of chapters report "facts" about J. K. Rowling's life that take place as late as the last quarter of the year 2000.

Overall, save your time and money for more worthwhile reading...

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I didn't get it., September 5, 2000

By 

"hellokitty123" (Idunno) - See all my reviews

This review is from: J. K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter (Paperback)

I didn't get why this book was written at all. The author associated everything about her life with Harry Potter. I was going to do a report about her but then I couldn't find many important facts about her life. The facts that were in the book were all jumbled up and unorganized. Half of the magazine articles written about Ms. Rowling are better than this. It's not very helpful with report either. Don't spend your the time reading or purchasing this book. It's a waste of time and money. Go read the Harry Potter series instead.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good book but a little dissapointing, July 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: J. K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter (Paperback)

Although the book was highly informative, it did not tell much more than what was already said in many interviews. Due to the fact that it was not an official biography he simply took the sources interviews and turned them into a book. I did not feel that the book was worth spending time reading. I also felt that the author was a little confused with some of the details in the books when he stated that owls run banks (although this may be a difference in the British and U.S. versions, the books say that goblins run Gringotts) he also states a few incoorect names. All in all the book is good for someone who has never read a single interview with J.K. Rowling. Don't expect any big shocking secrets no more has been revealed than the interview with scholastic and a few British magazines.