J. K. Rowling: A Biography

by Connie Ann Kirk

Book Overview

The unprecedented popularity of the Harry Potter books took the publishing world by storm and captured the imaginations of readers around the world. This unofficial biographical study of J. K. Rowling invites fans and critics alike to take a close look at the person behind the phenomenon, the facts of her life as a writer, and the extraordinary success of an ordinary woman. L This detailed book explores both the critical acclaim and the controversies...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0313322058
• ISBN13: 9780313322051
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Greenwood
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.6" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

When You Are Done Reading ORDER OF THE PHOENIX.....

......read this book about the great writer, J. K. Rowling! I like how she played guitar and drew pictures, besides doing her writing. The author of this biography says that J. K. Rowling and Harry Potter are like the Beatles. From what my parents say about them, I think so, too. Then I heard on the webcast interview from London that J. K. Rowling's favorite group is the Beatles--so, it's like this author knew that already! You'll love this book if you like Harry Potter and J. K. Rowling. I love the names of the fungi in the Forest of Dean. If you grew up there, maybe you'd have J. K. Rowling's imagination, too! She read lots of books, too, which figures, doesn't it? This book tells more about the books she read than any other book I've seen about her. Over the summer, I'm going to write a letter to J. K. Rowling using her addresses in the back of this book. This book is packed with information! Buy it and read it!

A Harry Potter Fan

My mom and I both read this book while we were waiting for Harry Potter #5 to come out. It has some things in it I've never heard of before about Ms. Rowling. My mom said she thought the Forest of Dean near where Ms. Rowling grew up sounded like a magical place and maybe that's where some of her ideas came from. We loved the names of the mushrooms they have there! We liked this book a lot and recommend it to any Harry Potter fans out there who would like to know more about the author. It's also the most up-to-date biography we know of--it even mentions her new baby!

Up-to-date and Accurate

This book is very informative and provides a clear way of undrstanding parts of J.K. Rowling's life. It is by far the most accurate and up-to-date biography of J.K. Rowling. I give this book 5 stars because of its accuracy and the fact that this book is the most up-to-date biography of J.K. Rowling.

Readable, Complete, and Informative!

This book brings together in one place a lot of the information about Rowling's life that you've read in bits and pieces online or in newspapers and magazines, or have heard about in television or radio interviews. As a fellow writer herself, Kirk brings an important insight to her look at Rowling's background that journalists have not captured. She describes her not only as a girl growing up in England in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s but also as a woman who believed in writing Harry Potter's story even when the odds were stacked against her by a world culture that does not value the middle class attempting to work in the arts. This is the first biography to avoid the sentimentality of the "poor, single mother" image and consider Rowling as a temporarily unemployed, college-educated woman who kept her head, worked as a teacher, and took care of her daughter while at the same time remaining dedicated to her writing and particularly to Harry Potter's story. If Harry feels like a beloved character to the millions who read his story, that is because the author "met" him, nurtured him, and believed in him first and infused him with love and courage.This book considers the places and times where and when the author grew up and lived (such as the Forest of Dean in the West Country of England and the 1960s and 70s) and how that context and what was also going on in the world at that time may have directly influenced Rowling's sensibilities, humanitarianism, and work. This strategy in the book continues as important moments in Rowling's life are described parallel to world events until, remarkably, they intersect around September 11th, 2001, when the first Harry Potter film is released that fall to a public much in need of a bit of fantasy. Family, teachers, and friends and their influence on the writer are also considered throughout. Harry's story is told from the first time Rowling met him on the delayed train through the 2nd film and the fifth novel. Controversies Rowling has faced in terms of literary criticism, lawsuits, and book burnings are also addressed fully and fairly. The appendices are many and add much--they include a timeline of Rowling's life and achievements, awards each novel has won, a listing of J. K. Rowling's reading, charitable organizations that are important to her, and addresses for the author both in the U.S. and U.K.. The bibliography is extensive, including all of Rowling's works (British and American publications; articles, too), biographical sources, reading and education guides, responses from young people, criticism and reviews, related articles, and websites. There is a helpful index as well.The biography is easy to read and informative and attempts to place Rowling's work in context with world events, literature, and popular culture. The book would have benefited from more careful editing, but the fresh contexts and updated information provided in the biography will cause most readers to overlook this. I highly recommend th