The Lexicon: An Unauthorized Guide to Harry Potter Fiction and Related Materials
Steve Vander Ark, . . RDR Books, $24.95 (368pp) ISBN 978-1-57143-174-5
The final incarnation of a book at the center of a headline-grabbing suit for copyright infringement brought by J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Entertainment, is, as its introduction states, “mindful of the guidelines of the court,” which ruled in Rowling’s favor in 2008.
If ever a book were to test the truism that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, it may be this one: an A–Z encyclopedic guide to J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter universe, based on a popular Web site created by Vander Ark in 2000, and the center of high-profile litigation. That case settled, the question now becomes online Lexicon
Vander Ark has taken pains not to use Rowling’s “unique expressions,” as the introduction calls that writer’s words (for example, the book’s readers learn that doxies “have a poisonous bite”; users of the Lexicon Web site find that doxies “have sharp venomous teeth,” plus a reference to Rowling’s
Reviewed on: 01/05/2009
Genre: Children's