Groosham Grange and/or the Unholy Grail!

[DilanMelis]

I read about three quarters of Groosham Grange some time ago. It was not bad, but it is aimed at slightly younger readers.

Granny is not part of the series. It is a stand-alone, as far as I know. I read it ages ago and I do not remember all that much about it.

i think so too... with granny i mean... again i agree with you that GG and UH are aimed at younger readers, so itslucky that i read them when i was 9 eh? hehe... but if you haven't read them and theres nothing for you to do i reckon there pretty good

[Soccerchick]

Well, dang it!  I should have read them when I was younger.  Somehow I don't think I'd enjoy them so much if they are aimed at younger readers...

[DilanMelis]

nah... you may think so, but they're funny and cute... read it if you ever get the time

[Soccerchick]

Meh... I guess I don't really seem to associate AH with cute.  But the funny part I can get.

[Poekie]

Groosham Grange is Hogwarts. No doubt about it. I've read it ten, fifteen years ago, and when Potter came out the first thing I said when reading the book was "It's David Elliot!"
Sure, the books are thin and there's only two of them. But they're cool and filled with jokes, stopped at the right moment: not as boring as the last potter turned out to be.
I remember Anthony once saying in an interview that it indeed looks quite alike but he wasn't going to do anything about it because the books are getting children to read, which is really important. I agree, shows he's way better than that rowling for sueing the pants off everyone that even looks like potter figuratively speaking.

[DilanMelis]

are you sure?

[Rainbowstar]

Groosham Grange is Hogwarts. No doubt about it. I've read it ten, fifteen years ago, and when Potter came out the first thing I said when reading the book was "It's David Elliot!"
Sure, the books are thin and there's only two of them. But they're cool and filled with jokes, stopped at the right moment: not as boring as the last potter turned out to be.
I remember Anthony once saying in an interview that it indeed looks quite alike but he wasn't going to do anything about it because the books are getting children to read, which is really important. I agree, shows he's way better than that rowling for sueing the pants off everyone that even looks like potter figuratively speaking.

WOOHOO FINALLY someone who agrees with me!  By the way I think I saw that interview too.  However, when I first heard about Harry potter I didn't even want to touch the books because i felt like it was pure plagiary.  I did however watch all the interviews with JK Rowling that were given on TV, and the documentaries on Harry Potter, the makings of the movies(Only saw the first 3 movies a couple of weeks ago cause i was tricked into watching them, didn't even want to do that).  When JK Rowling  explained how she got the idea for Harry potter riding on the train I was 100 % sure that she was reading Groosham Grange at that moment.  And now that I've seen the movies I'm even more convinced of that!

I don't believe it's pure plagiary anymore, but I do still believe that that is were she got her inspiration, and I think she should at least admit that.  The main problem i have with it though is that Harry potter catapulted her into immediate stardom when (or so i have been told) Anthony Horowitz' Groosham Grange books weren't even gonna get published ebcause they were about magic

Sorry...I'll get of my high horse now(this is something I can argue for hours over...in fact I've been doing it for years with several people)

Anyways, Groosham Grange is a wonderful series.  Even when you're older it is still packed with a lot of things that are definately worth reading it.  It is by far my favourite AH series, and I find it very sad that it'll never be continued(I remember someone saying once that he wouldn't to avoid legal trouble when it came to harry potter).  These are also the books which got me interested in witchcraft and fantasy, and inspired me to start writing myself...not that i could ever be compared hehe

Plus I have an Unholy Grale copy signed by the author...that makes it all the more valuable to me

[DilanMelis]

Plus I have an Unholy Grale copy signed by the author...that makes it all the more valuable to me

         

*no comment... let the emoticons giude you through my feelings*

[Anonymous]

I read them
I think they are ok

[undercover]

Groosham Grange is Hogwarts. No doubt about it. etc.

Good point, that. Unfortunately, I read HP first, so I had not really thought of it, but it makes sense.

Seriously, though, no books are entirely original. Everything is inspired by something. Though I must say, HP appropriates istelf an awful lot of mythology.

I recently visited the UK. I went into an Oxfam bookshop in Oxford, because I wanted to buy the glow-in-the-dark "Make Poverty History" bracelet (okay, who cares). Anyway, the point is that I had a quick look at the "young reader" books while I was there. I was able to get an out-of-print edition of the Unholy Grail (now it is called Return to Groosham Grange), as well as some of AH's other books that I cannot get over here.

[Rainbowstar]

Well yeah it's true that no story is completely original.  But there's a bit more similarity between groosham grange and harry potter than lord of the rings and the sword of shannara...even though those two books are already similar.  that's why i think it's so bad.  And like I said, it seems unfair for rowling to have so much success with it when AH only started having real international succes years later.  I just think it's unfair.
I was amazed when I read the mention of Harry Potter in  Raven's Gate.  I wouldn't be so big about it if I were AH....if i had mentioned Harry potter in one of my books, I'd say something nasty about them, but he didn't even do that...Kudos to him

[undercover]

What you say makes sense.

I agree that it is unfair the JKR achieved international success so quickly (when so many great authors have to wait years to become known). Sure, the HP books are good, but:
1) As we are discussing, the story is simply a twist on a number of others;
2) They are not even that well written (I have found grammar mistakes in each one).


I think AH is being a good sport. Instead of fighting fire with fire, he is making a joke out of it.

I personally believe that AH is by far a superior author, both when it comes to stories and when it comes to structure.

Yeah, kudos to Mr. Horowitz.

[undercover]

Sorry!

So, Groosham Grange...

Well, I was able to pick up a copy of The Unholy Grail at a used-book store.

I noticed that the new editions of this book are called "Return to Groosham Grange".

[Rainbowstar]

i was told it wasn't really a new edition but rather just a different title given to it, because people didn't realise it was linked to groosham grange or something?

[undercover]

That makes sense.

When I say new edition, I just mean the more recent copies of the book.

What counts, really, is the content.