I'm definitely in favor of anything that gets the little moppets reading. In my public library, I have a book display titled: "If You Liked
Harry Potter, Try THESE!", and it features the fantasy novels of
Diana Wynne Jones and others. I personally view Potter as a "gateway drug" to the better stuff.
Oh, and the god-squad I've encountered is protesting even C.S.
Lewis' Narnia series these days. What is this world coming to?
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Nanaea