Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Quidditch for Muggles

So, at camp this past weekend (Mother/Daughter Girl Scout Camp, thank you very much), we played Quidditch.

Yes, you heard (or rather, read, that right). A volleyball, a snitch, four hula hoops on poles (think giant lollipops), and two brooms. Eight girls and two crazy moms. Thank the powers-that-be there are no pictures. Can you imagine a game you invented for a book becoming so real to people that girl scouts camping in New Hampshire play it?

So everyone is blogging about JK Rowling lately. In my house, we've had the audio books on repeat for about a year--or more, I've lost track. And yet sometimes I take for granted how spectacular they really are.

In contrast, I started a new book for bookclub last night. I won't mention the title. The writing is horrible. It's ALL telling. No showing. AT ALL. In other words, "I walked to the couch and sat down." "I told him what happened." "We drank for hours." No rich detail. No deep-felt emotion. I'm struggling through it, but there is no personality, nothing real to grab onto. Nothing to make me care a hoot about the characters.

JK Rowling shows you her world, in deep, rich color. I sometimes forget that certain scenes aren't in the movies because I can see them so vividly in my mind.

Something to remember when I'm working on the WIP.

On a related note, I saw Deathly Hallows Part 2 last night. The purist in me was annoyed about a few missing scenes, but on the whole, it was a wonderful, satisfying ending. 

10 comments:

Stina said...

I haven't read the final book in a few years, so I won't notice the missing scenes. I just have to wait a little longer to get to see it. I missed part one when it was in the theatre. My husband (who's never read the books and never really got into the movies) took my oldest while I had to take my youngest two to Tangled (hubby didn't want to see it). THIS time I'm taking my oldest to see HP. :D

Laura Pauling said...

I wouldn't miss the missing scenes either. I read the books a while ago. But playing a game of quidditch would be fun!

MG Higgins said...

I'd LOVE to see photos of your quidditch match. I bet you guys had a ball.

Kristine Asselin said...

Stina/Laura--not really so much missing scenes as scenes changed to make the movie move. I don't object to them, but it's not exactly the same. All the same, the movie worked.

Melissa--NO you don't! It wasn't pretty. :)

Vickie Motter said...

Quidditch is so much fun! It can be a brutal game though. I used to be on a team in college, haha. The books on tape are amazing, though I've only listened to the last one. I agree about the missing scenes; I wanted the back story of Ariana! I had tissues ready and everything!

Sophia Chang said...

LU-CKY! Are there photos of this Quidditch playing? I want to see the brooms.

MTeacress said...

That sounds fun, but I am sad you have no pics.

I haven't seen the last two HP movies. Am I crazy? Maybe. ;)

Have a great week!

Kristine Asselin said...

Oh, it's very good that there are no pictures. :) The brooms were regular brooms used to defend the hoops.

Not crazy, Michelle. Just missing out. The last two movies have been awesome. HP and friends are part of daily life in my house, so it's hard to explain what it means.

Laura Josephsen said...

HOW FUN!!!

I've been reading Harry Potter to my kids and even though I've read them many times, I'm loving them all over again. JK Rowling brought her world to life, for sure.

Ansha Kotyk said...

I wanna play!