"Did you know that all of Harry Potter’s spells are in Latin? Or that the sea in House on the Cerulean Sea is a real place? Did you know that the book Howl's Moving Castle came out in 1986, but the movie came out in 2005?" -- Hayley schoeneman and Maia Cavagnolo
Did you know that all of Harry Potter’s spells are in Latin? Or that the sea in House on the Cerulean Sea is a real place? Did you know that the book Howl's Moving Castle came out in 1986, but the movie came out in 2005? These are the top three favorites of the middle school Literary Arts class. Read to find out more about these great books——why people like them, and what they don’t like about them.
The book that came in third place in the middle school Literary Arts class is the well known and beloved Harry Potter series. According to an article called “Why is Harry Potter So Popular?” by Steven Kubitza and Brandon Marcus, “The Harry Potter series is the highest-selling series of novels to ever exist. J.K. Rowling has sold at least 500 million copies from her book series.” And it’s true, Rowling has made an astounding amount of money off this one series. But why? “J. K. Rowling knew what she was doing when she gave her three main characters the personality traits that they had,” says Steven Kubitza and Brandon Marcus. The characters play a big part in Harry Potter. All of them develop unique personalities and traits, while still remaining friends. The way that Rowling keeps the friendship in line also shows up in the popular movie series based on the book. The books were, as the article puts it “...quickly adapted to even more popular films.” So fast, in fact, that Rowling wasn’t even done with the books when they started making the movies!
The books are all good but some are better than others. Sixth grader Ruby Deetz says, “I think generally the series is just a really good ongoing story, but my favorite book of the series was The Goblet of Fire. It was just really action packed.”
Despite her amazing skill as an author Rowling has recently shown herself as transphobic. She’s Tweeted many posts targeting transgender people, and her books have many hidden stereotypes and lack of accurate representation, or representation at all. And yet she produces these beautiful stories spun from pure imagination. No one should be shamed for liking Harry Potter because it is, in simple words, an amazing story, but the things that she says are not okay.
In the article “Jo Rowling is a Horrible Person” the blogger writes, “Jews as goblins, house-elf slavery that upset no one but Hermione, werewolves as a metaphor for AIDS with Lupin as a stand-in for predatory homosexuals or those who target children, the promotion of Irish and Scottish stereotypes in Seamus – a drinker and brawler and the red-haired Weasleys – large families, negative Chinese representation in Cho Chang and her two last names, her lack of LGBTQ+ representation, and so much more.” Although the author may be a horrible person, not many books can beat Harry Potter in popularity.
The second most popular book, Howl’s Moving Castle, is a story about "a girl who gets turned into an old lady by a witch, and has to go out and look for herbs, to try to turn herself back, and ends up stumbling across Howl’s castle. It’s basically about how she gets dragged into the things that Howl's doing, and then building a relationship together,” according to Zoe Deetz, an 8th grade Literary Arts student.
Howl’s Moving Castle was a runner up for the Boston Globe-Horn Award in Fiction in 1986, the year it was published, and twenty years later won the Phoenix Award. It was made into a movie many years after it was published. According to Z. Deetz, “It’s a great movie but I like the book better.”
One of the main things that makes this book so good is the unusual characters and plot. It leans away from more typical novels thus pulling you in, and making you unable to stop reading. Howl's Moving Castle is an intriguing fantasy book, perfect for readers who like magic and the sort.
The most popular book out of all the votes in Literary Arts is The House in the Cerulean Sea. “The House in the Cerulean Sea is an enchanting love story, masterfully told, about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place―and realizing that family is yours,” as posted on TJ Klune’s official website.
House on the Cerulean Sea is a book about Linus Baker, a by-the-book rule-follower who is tasked with a big job: determine whether or not an orphanage holding six magical children could doom the Earth. While he is there, he learns that family is important, and so is protecting what you love. Arthur Parnassus, the head of the orphanage, protects and takes care of these six children. When Linus comes with the threat of taking down the orphanage, he jumps in to protect them. But with time, Linus learns to love the children, and Arthur.
Another reason why people love House in the Cerulean Sea is the fully developed writing and characters. “The writing, description, is lovely, the characters are very heartwarming and detailed,” says Zara Quiter, a 6th grade Literary Arts student.” TJ Klune’s characters are a big part of the book. The way he develops them while still keeping their original and funny personalities is amazing. “There are lovable characters, the plot’s good. It’s just so beautifully crafted,” Quiter says.
The House on the Cerulean sea has won many awards including ALA Alex Awards Winner, Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, and Chicago Tribune Best Books of the Year. This book, being the most popular of this list, is beautiful in all ways imaginable.
Now you have seen the OSA Literary Arts sub-pathway top three favorite books. Hopefully this article helps you learn more about these books or even just find a new book to read. These are all highly recommended books for any fantasy lover!
The book that came in third place in the middle school Literary Arts class is the well known and beloved Harry Potter series. According to an article called “Why is Harry Potter So Popular?” by Steven Kubitza and Brandon Marcus, “The Harry Potter series is the highest-selling series of novels to ever exist. J.K. Rowling has sold at least 500 million copies from her book series.” And it’s true, Rowling has made an astounding amount of money off this one series. But why? “J. K. Rowling knew what she was doing when she gave her three main characters the personality traits that they had,” says Steven Kubitza and Brandon Marcus. The characters play a big part in Harry Potter. All of them develop unique personalities and traits, while still remaining friends. The way that Rowling keeps the friendship in line also shows up in the popular movie series based on the book. The books were, as the article puts it “...quickly adapted to even more popular films.” So fast, in fact, that Rowling wasn’t even done with the books when they started making the movies!
The books are all good but some are better than others. Sixth grader Ruby Deetz says, “I think generally the series is just a really good ongoing story, but my favorite book of the series was The Goblet of Fire. It was just really action packed.”
Despite her amazing skill as an author Rowling has recently shown herself as transphobic. She’s Tweeted many posts targeting transgender people, and her books have many hidden stereotypes and lack of accurate representation, or representation at all. And yet she produces these beautiful stories spun from pure imagination. No one should be shamed for liking Harry Potter because it is, in simple words, an amazing story, but the things that she says are not okay.
In the article “Jo Rowling is a Horrible Person” the blogger writes, “Jews as goblins, house-elf slavery that upset no one but Hermione, werewolves as a metaphor for AIDS with Lupin as a stand-in for predatory homosexuals or those who target children, the promotion of Irish and Scottish stereotypes in Seamus – a drinker and brawler and the red-haired Weasleys – large families, negative Chinese representation in Cho Chang and her two last names, her lack of LGBTQ+ representation, and so much more.” Although the author may be a horrible person, not many books can beat Harry Potter in popularity.
The second most popular book, Howl’s Moving Castle, is a story about "a girl who gets turned into an old lady by a witch, and has to go out and look for herbs, to try to turn herself back, and ends up stumbling across Howl’s castle. It’s basically about how she gets dragged into the things that Howl's doing, and then building a relationship together,” according to Zoe Deetz, an 8th grade Literary Arts student.
Howl’s Moving Castle was a runner up for the Boston Globe-Horn Award in Fiction in 1986, the year it was published, and twenty years later won the Phoenix Award. It was made into a movie many years after it was published. According to Z. Deetz, “It’s a great movie but I like the book better.”
One of the main things that makes this book so good is the unusual characters and plot. It leans away from more typical novels thus pulling you in, and making you unable to stop reading. Howl's Moving Castle is an intriguing fantasy book, perfect for readers who like magic and the sort.
The most popular book out of all the votes in Literary Arts is The House in the Cerulean Sea. “The House in the Cerulean Sea is an enchanting love story, masterfully told, about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place―and realizing that family is yours,” as posted on TJ Klune’s official website.
House on the Cerulean Sea is a book about Linus Baker, a by-the-book rule-follower who is tasked with a big job: determine whether or not an orphanage holding six magical children could doom the Earth. While he is there, he learns that family is important, and so is protecting what you love. Arthur Parnassus, the head of the orphanage, protects and takes care of these six children. When Linus comes with the threat of taking down the orphanage, he jumps in to protect them. But with time, Linus learns to love the children, and Arthur.
Another reason why people love House in the Cerulean Sea is the fully developed writing and characters. “The writing, description, is lovely, the characters are very heartwarming and detailed,” says Zara Quiter, a 6th grade Literary Arts student.” TJ Klune’s characters are a big part of the book. The way he develops them while still keeping their original and funny personalities is amazing. “There are lovable characters, the plot’s good. It’s just so beautifully crafted,” Quiter says.
The House on the Cerulean sea has won many awards including ALA Alex Awards Winner, Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, and Chicago Tribune Best Books of the Year. This book, being the most popular of this list, is beautiful in all ways imaginable.
Now you have seen the OSA Literary Arts sub-pathway top three favorite books. Hopefully this article helps you learn more about these books or even just find a new book to read. These are all highly recommended books for any fantasy lover!
