Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Hello, I’m Amber 1 and this is bbclearningenglish.com.
　　In Entertainment today, we listen to a review of the seventh, and last, HarryPotter book - Harry 2 Potter and the Deathly Hallows – which millions ofchildren (and adults) rushed out to buy at midnight on the day it was publishedsimultaneously in 93 countries! It had a print run of 12 million in the US alone!
　　After 10 years of twists and turns in the life of the young wizard, Harry Potter,there’s a final confrontation 3 between Harry and a highly evil character. It’s adark rollercoaster ride, with Harry on the run most of the time. And if the salesfigures are true – this is officially the fastest selling book in history!
　　We’ll hear from the author and book critic Amanda Craig. As soon as she gothold of her copy, she sat on the sofa reading it for ‘6 hours solid’ - she didn’tput it down until she’d finished!
　　So what’s so magical about the Harry Potter books? Well, Amanda Craig hasan interesting answer to that question. She quotes JK Rowling who has said shedoesn’t really like ‘fantasy’ – that’s a type of fiction featuring imaginaryworlds and magical events! (We have the related adjectives ‘fantastic’ and‘fantastical’ – meaning - not real, strange and imaginary.)Amanda Craig says the world of Harry Potter is so ‘irresistible 4’ – it’s sooverpowering – because of two things. She says it’s a result of – ‘it’s down to’
　　– two things. Try to catch what they are.
　　Amanda Craig‘One of the most interesting things about her is that she’s said that she doesn’t really likefantasy. And in fact, if you look at the way that she’s written it, I think the explanation forwhy she’d so popular is down to two things – one is that in every book she’s sort of writing adetective story or a thriller 5, and there’s where adults have got on to the whole series, but theother more interesting thing is she’s actually made the magical world seem real, seemsomething you could just walk into off Tottenham Court Road, and by doing that she’s alsocorrespondingly made reality more magical, and I think that’s what’s so irresistible about hervision, her … you know, Harry’s whole world that it’s a world in which wizards do have tolearn magic, they have to do homework, and that’s really delightful 6.’
　　Amber:       So Amanda Craig explains that she thinks the magical power of the HarryPotter books is down to the exciting stories or plots – every book is like adetective story or thriller. And this is why adults like the books; this is whyadults have ‘got on to’ them, why they have become interested in them. Andthe books make the magical seem real – as real as Tottenham Court Road - abusy road of shops and cafes in central London! And they make the real worldseem magical – that is clever isn’t it?
　　Listen again.
　　Amanda Craig‘One of the most interesting things about her is that she’s said that she doesn’t really likefantasy. And in fact, if you look at the way that she’s written it, I think the explanation forwhy she’d so popular is down to two things – one is that in every book she’s sort of writing adetective story or a thriller, and there’s where adults have got on to the whole series, but theother more interesting thing is she’s actually made the magical world seem real, seemsomething you could just walk into off Tottenham Court Road, and by doing that she’s alsocorrespondingly made reality more magical, and I think that’s what’s so irresistible about hervision, her … you know, Harry’s whole world that it’s a world in which wizards do have tolearn magic, they have to do homework, and that’s really delightful.’
　　Amber:  JK Rowling is also often praised for being a very cinematic writer which iswhy her books make wonderful films. But she’s probably most respected forencouraging so many millions of young people to read fiction. She’s madethem interested in it; she’s ‘turned them on to’ reading. And so now, reading is‘cooler’ – it’s much more fashionable than it was. She’s stopped reading frombeing ‘killed off’ by computer games and she’s ‘paved 7 the way’, she’sprepared the way, for another great children’s writer! Try to catch his name.
　　Amanda Craig‘I think a lot more children have been turned on to reading and reading has become a lotcooler than it was. It was real danger of just being killed off by game boxes and computersand I think – yes! – and she’s paved the way for another really great children’s writer which isPhillip Pullman, who has it all, I think!’
　　Amber:  So if you’ve enjoyed the Harry Potter books, try reading Philip Pullman’sstories. Loads of adults think they’re brilliant too! Start with ‘His DarkMaterials’…Now let’s recap the language we focussed on.
　　fantasy – a type of fiction featuring imaginary worlds and magical eventsto be down to something – to be the result of somethingirresistible – overpoweringcooler – more fashionableto be killed off – to be endedpaved the way – prepared the way