It is objectively poorly written and poorly constructed. That’s not really up for debate. The idea that it’s acceptable for small children is it’s only saving grace. Any adult who likes it is blinded by nostalgia or has built a personality around it.

I “grew up” with it. I read them as they came out as I was about the age. It was known to be slop for children back then.

It’s not a binary from bad to acceptable. There’s A LOT of range in YA books and a lot of good ones. Rowlings issue is so fundamental it really would prevent her from writing any kind of book. She simply packed the knowledge about writing to do any amount of planning ahead. She’s constantly pulling out a McGuffin and insulting the intelligence of her readers. There’s no thought put into the world. The characters don’t come to life. It has the sensibility of Willy Wonka and the set design by Tim Burton. Her writing is closer to a single stream of consciousness than a deliberate plot because she lacked, and probably still lacks, the literary skill or expertise to actually craft that.

Her success is entirely due to factors outside her control and is in spite of her characteristic lack of ability.

Also; Tom Clancy sucks. In fact, Tom Clancy <<< Clive Cussler- and Cussler is mediocre at best.

I think that’s a very apt way to put it.

A service le paperback detective fiction for kids.

It’s abundantly clear the ending of book 1 wasn’t even planned. Harry Potter doesn’t even work when you look at each book individually. Even by YA standards.

Non Americans don’t understand and assume we have the same liberties as them.

“Just do die in the street and achieve nothing” Isn’t the compelling moral argument many Canadians seem to think it is.