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Some fictional characters get their invitation to the perfect school by owl. For you, there's this e-mail from Kenyon College.

If your sense of humor and your sense of wonder inform everything you do, just go to owls.kenyon.edu, where you can learn more about Kenyon, one of the country's best liberal arts colleges. (And tell us about your perfect college, if you like.)

This message sent by admissions@kenyon.edu.
Kenyon College
101 Chase Avenue
Gambier, OH 43022

You opted in to this list from: We received your name from the College Board PSAT search or from your high school per results of the NRCCUA survey.

Hogwarts Professor

When anyone on the Internet links to this site, I’m sent a “pingback” notice. It’s fun to see who is talking about what we’re talking about here (most of the time) but sometimes the link is more of a stretch than usual. In September I got pinged from Sweden and I couldn’t make heads or tails of the post from way, way over there. So I wrote Odd Sverre Hove, our man in Norway, and he sent me a translation.

The original:

On Turtleback Tales And Asterisks Av John Granger September 12, 2011

Ojoj, det här är himla häftigt så häng med nu. Titeln i rubriken kommer från en bok som heter Harry Potter for nerds (dvs för mig) och boken består av tolv uppsatser som alla analyserar Potterböckerna på ett underbart djuplodat vis. När jag var på Leakycon i somras såg jag dessutom John Granger hålla en föreläsning baserad på denna uppsats och en bok han skrivit.

John Granged har en teori om att J K Rowling byggt upp sina böcker genom vad han kallar ringkomposition. Det vill säga om man placerar de sju böckerna i Harry Potterserien i en ring så får man en spegel där böckerna relaterar till varandra. Försök att se det framför  er. En cirkel med första och sista boken längst ner, bok fyra på toppen och två och sex samt tre och fem mittemot varandra. Om du sedan delar upp böckerna bok för bok så ska du kunna göra samma sak med alla kapitlen. Det var oerhört roligt att höra Granger lägga fram bevis efter bevis för sin teori. Jag kan omöjligt återge alla de händelser han tog upp för att beviksa sin tes, men som tur är finns det ett inlägg på Grangers egen hemsida för er som vill djuploda som jag. Om ni dessutom inte nöjer er med detta så kan ni ju göra som jag tänker göra och köpa hela boken och få hela 164 sidor om Ringcomposition och hur Potterböckerna byggts upp. Kom bara ihåg att även om det är oerhört fascinerande så är det John Grangers toerier och Rowling har inte konfirmerat något av det han säger. Men spännande är det, eller vad tycker ni? Jag vet i alla fall att jag nu har ännu en anledning att läsa om hela serien för att kolla teroin och det ska bli kul.

av Elin

Odd’s translation:

On Turtleback Tales And Asterisks

By John Granger September 12, 2011

Wow, this is heavenly intense (**), so hang on now. The title of this column comes from a book called Harry Potter for Nerds (that is: for me), and the book consists of 12 pieces analyzing the Potter books in an obviously deep-digging way. When I was at LeakyCon this summer, I saw by the way John Granger holding a lecture based on this concept and a book he wrote. John Granger has a teory saying that J K Rowling built her books through what he calls Ring Composition.

That means: If you place the seven books of the Potter series in a ring, then you get a mirror where the books relate to one another.. Try to picture it: A circle with the first and the last book at the bottom, book four at the top, and two and six, plus three and five, up anaginst one another. If you later split up the books, book by book, you should be able to do the same thing with all the chapters. It has been unheard-of (*) delightful to hear Granger forward proof after proof of his theory. I find it impossible to repeat all events he mentioned to give his proofs.

But in fact there is an article on Granger’s own homepage for you who might want to dig deeply like myself. And if you after that don’t stop there, you could even do as I plan to do and buy the whole book and get the compleete 164 pages on Ring Composition and how the Potter Books have been built up. Do remember, though, that even if this is unheard-of (*) fascinating , it is John Granger’s theories and Rowling has not confirmed anything of what he says. But exciting it is, or what do you think? I know at least that I now have another reason to read again the whole series to check the theory, and that is going to be cool.

By Elin.

(*) This Swedish term means literally «unheard-of», but is used more generally as a super-superlative, like «extremely» or «very, very» (or whatever young language might favor as the current super-superlative; I suddenly feel my 64 years on my shoulders when I ponder how to translate it).

(**) Is there an English youth idiom called «hefty» ?

Thank you, Odd, for the trip into Sweden’s fandom!

Hogwarts Professor

Hogwarts Heroes Ron comes with: Unique wand, Sorcerer’s Stone, and official school uniform.

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Those of you who hail from the Old World, or who have some frequent flyer points just begging to be used, don’t miss this fantastic opportunity coming up next year! The University of St. Andrews in Scotland is hosting a two-day academic conference to consider the literary depths of the Hogwarts adventures. A Brand of Fictional Magic: Imaginative Empathy in Harry Potter will bring together a wide variety of scholars, including our own Headmaster, John Granger, as a keynote speaker, along with Jessica Tiffin. One of our other HogPros, the esteemed John Patrick Pazdziora, is in charge of the paper proposals, so when you send yours in, I hear he likes Licorice Wands, so perhaps you should sneak in a couple! For the complete announcement and Call for Papers, follow the jump, and we hope many of you will be there next May!
Call for Papers:
A Brand of Fictional Magic: Imaginative Empathy in Harry Potter

A two day conference hosted by the School of English, University of St Andrews
17-18 May 2012, Kennedy Hall, St Andrews, Scotland

The relentless success of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series (1997-2007) evokes words like phenomenon and catastrophe. With the conclusion of the film franchise and the launch of Pottermore.com, the series is receiving increased academic consideration in conferences, articles, and monographs. However, relatively little work has been done directly engaging with the series as a literary text. This conference attempts to begin redressing that lack.

Rowling’s combination of fantasy and school-story genres, her use of folkloric archetypes and mythopoeic symbolism, and her social and religious messages render the Harry Potter books a point of interest—and controversy—to scholars from a wide range of disciplines. This conference seeks to critically explore Rowling’s concept of imaginative empathy, the ability to “learn and understand, without having experienced.” Of particular interest are ways in which the power of empathy, in addition to its being of socio-political necessity, might be read as Rowling’s “brand of fictional magic.”

We invite papers and panels that engage with the text to discuss the centrality of empathy to the economies of the creative artist. Relevant topics might include:

• The poetics of empathy
• Symbolic or archetypal depictions of empathy
• Readings of the series as children’s or YA literature
• Mythopoesis and the re-appropriation of folklore
• Medievalism and depictions of the Middle Ages in the Wizarding World
• Space, landscape, or architecture
• Representations and uses of socialization or maturation
• Depictions of education and pedagogy, empathetic or bounded
• Rowling’s concepts of “mental agoraphobia” and “wilful unimagination”
• Literary influences on the series
• Textual or semiotic analysis of the narrative
• Genre criticism, viz., Gothic, Fantasy, Fairy Tale, School Story, Dystopia, et al.
• Narrative voice and authority
• Political empathy, class action, or solidarity

Keynote speakers will be John Granger and Jessica Tiffin.

Papers will be 20 minutes, and may discuss any of the seven books individually or the series as a whole. Please submit a 300-word (max.) abstract in .doc, .docx., or .pdf format with a short CV to John Patrick Pazdziora (jpp6@st-andrews.ac.uk) by 15 November 2011.

Hogwarts Professor

Cheap Harry Potter Misterio en Hogwarts Feature

• Language Spanish
• Ages 8 to Adult
• 2 to 6 players

Spanish version of Mystery At Hogwarts:
Was it Ron Weasley with the Wingardium Leviosa in Filch’s office? Or was it Draco Malfoy with the Alohomora spell in the Transfiguration class? If it seems the Misterio en Hogwarts game bears more than a passing resemblance to Clue, the classic Detective game, your not imagining things or under the spell of Goyle’s Forgetfulness potion. Players must move about the representation of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to determine which three cards are in Fluffy’s Folder. Unravel the mystery of who cast the forbidden spell at Hogwarts.

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Cheap Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Hogwarts Express Ready-to-Run HO/OO Scale Electric Train Set Feature

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• Includes one UL listed power pack
• HO/OO Scale
• The original Hogwarts Express train set, issued in 2001

This particular Bachmann trainset includes E-Z Track, which works with all Bachmann E-Z Track pieces found at most hobby shops around the country! This set includes 3 passanger cars and an Engine and Tender car to pull it along.

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The Larry King Live teevee show on CNN is doing a blow-out Harry Potter special 10 July and they wrote me today to ask if I wanted to participate. Of course I agreed.

Having told you about the show, I have officially fulfilled my part in the program.

I’m guessing I’m one of several thousand people with weBlogs devoted to discussion of the Hogwarts Saga who received the following press release from Larry King’s marketing masters. Read it after the jump with my observations:

The announcement and request:

I’m Akua Harris, with ICED Media. As a HUGE Harry Potter fan I’m excited to be promoting an upcoming Larry King Special- Harry Potter: The Final Chapter, airing July 10th. The stars of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows- Part 2 will sit down with Larry King on July 10 at 8pm and again at 11pm ET. Everyone’s favorites- Daniel  Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Helena Bonham Carter and Robbie Coltrane will all be a part of the show. They’ll be premiering never before seen footage from the film as well as a tour of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter led by the Weasley Twins (James and Oliver Phelps) and an exclusive behind the scenes tour with the special effects team who bring our magical world to life. The extended clip of the film will be shown exclusively on CNN days before the movie releases, on July 15th worldwide- as if your (sic) not counting the days like I am! Contact me for a pic of Larry and Daniel from the special. If you could share this with your readers, that’d be awesome. I’ve provided a few sample tweets if you’d like to share this with your twitter followers as well, the official hashtag is #PotteronCNN. There’s also going to be a contest with Larry King’s Twitter profile that we’ll have more info on soon.

Sample Tweet: On July 10 @KingsThings is interviewing #HarryPotter cast on CNN! Don’t miss it! #PotteronCNN http://on.cnn.com/kPscQf

Sample Tweet: CNN Presents: A Larry King (@KingsThings) Special- Harry PotterL The Final Chapter http://on.cnn.com/kPscQf #PotteronCNN

Thanks so much,

-Akua

I have two observations.

(1) The Obvious:

The show is a money making vehicle for CNN. Not only will they get off-the-chart ratings and corresponding advertising revenue but one assumes they did it in tandem with a marketing deal with Warner Brothers in which quid pro quo “you get special access and we get a preferred advertising rate in prime time slots for the film’s target audience.” There won’t be anything discussed of any weight beyond “how do you feel about this being over?” For the drinking game, I recommend the words “amazing” and “interesting,” which will be heard at least every other minute, especially in the talks with the younger actors and actresses.

(2) Even More Obvious?

Gilderoy here thinks  Akua’s description of the show is disappointing. From what s/he shared, it seems very unlikely that anything of interest to students of the Potter books or the cultural aftermath of a decade-long Potter mania will be discussed on Mr. King’s show.

That’s a shame because there’s a lot to discuss.

One of the feature stories in July’s Christianity Today is one I wrote about how Ms. Rowling’s Harry Potter artistry has affected, even shaped the contemporary fiction scene, with series like Twilight and Hunger Games lifting their key story elements from her series. The article, titled ‘Harry is Here to Stay,’ argues that her influence is so profound that it is even re-shaping our understanding of the past, as we re-experience the ‘Greats’ through a Harry Potter lens.

If I had a teevee to watch (or cable?), I probably would watch the show. I enjoy the movies, if I am no judge of their artistic merits as film (I’m a book guy, remember?), and I’d like to see the extended trailer this show promises to be. My children and I went to see Green Lantern on my Sarah’s 21st birthday last week and we all were on the edge of our seats when the Deathly Hallows 2 preview was on screen.

But, hey, CNN took the low route. Mr. King, who famously never reads books by authors he interviews, was certainly not going to invite a Potter Pundit or two or three (as A&E did back in 2007) when the deal is all about exciting movie goers about the premiere rather than talking literature for the geeks.

Still, think of what fun it would be if Tom Snyder still had his Tomorrow show…

Your comments and corrections are coveted. Please overlook the whining above and let me know what you think of the CNN program 10 July. If you have the email address for King’s prime time replacement, Piers Morgan, and want to share it, feel free. Gilderoy is all ears. (the an again, maybe not).

Hogwarts Professor

Cheap Harry Potter Hogwarts Checkers Set Feature

• Check this out! Here’s your chance to play checkers like they do at the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
• And trust us: there’s a lot more to winning this age-old game than meets the eye especially when your opponent is a wizard or a witch! This nicely crafted set of Harry Potter Checkers features a faithfully themed board and pieces that will transport you to the hallowed halls of Hogwarts.
• Pit your skills against a fellow wizard wannabe and may the best Hogwart win! Checkers (also called ‘draughts’) is a board game for 2 players, each with 12 pieces (men, counters, or checkers) positioned on the black squares of a 64-square checkerboard.
• Play consists of advancing a piece diagonally forward to an adjoining square, the goal being to jump and thus capture each of an opponent’s pieces until all are removed and victory is declared. When a piece reaches the final (king) row, it is crowned with a piece of the same color and can begin to move in any direction.
• The game is ended when either of the players has lost all his men, or cannot move them. Similar games have been played in various cultures and in times extending back to antiquity.

Check this out! Here’s your chance to play checkers like they do at the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And trust us: there’s a lot more to winning this age-old game than meets the eye especially when your opponent is a wizard or a witch! This nicely crafted set of Harry Potter Checkers features a faithfully themed board and pieces that will transport you to the hallowed halls of Hogwarts. Pit your skills against a fellow wizard wannabe and may the best Hogwart win! Checkers (also called ‘draughts’) is a board game for 2 players, each with 12 pieces (men, counters, or checkers) positioned on the black squares of a 64-square checkerboard. Play consists of advancing a piece diagonally forward to an adjoining square, the goal being to jump and thus capture each of an opponent’s pieces until all are removed and victory is declared. When a piece reaches the final (king) row, it is crowned with a piece of the same color and can begin to move in any direction. The game is ended when either of the players has lost all his men, or cannot move them. Similar games have been played in various cultures and in times extending back to antiquity.

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Cheap Harry Potter Hogwarts Deluxe Scarf Feature

• 85 inches
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• Acrylic

Hogwarts scarf in black with accent colors from the four different houses.
Black with Maroon, Yellow, Green and Navy Blue Stripes.
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This Scarf also comes with an attached patch embroidered with the Hogwarts Logo.

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Toot, toot. Take a trip on the Hogwarts Express. Harry and Ron meet their new teacher, Professor Lupin, on board the Hogwarts Express – too bad there’s a Dementor on board, too. Lift the top of the boiler off, and pull the handle in the steering house to reveal a secret compartment. It comes off the passenger car so you can put Harry and his friends inside the train.

Includes Hogsmeade station, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Professor Lupin, and a Dementor. Train does not run on LEGO train tracks but can be modified accordingly. Includes 386 LEGO pieces.

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Continue reading ‘LEGO Stories & Themes Harry Potter Hogwarts Express (4758)’ »