The footnotes, of course, are part of the tricky nature of this book. At times they refer to real people and historic events, at other times they are all about the invented people that populate the novel and the invented historic occurrences. No youngsters, no matter how well read, would have the patience to deal with such footnotes, nor would the historic events be familiar to them. Besides, there is the early 19^th century language that the book's author, Susanna Clarke, employs in her novel. It would not appeal to youngsters. Harry Potter is of today, Norrell and Strange are men who have known the 18^thy century and are now living in the early 19^th.

Having said this, I have to admit that I had a jolly good time reading Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, although I found it less gripping than the Harry Potter books, and at times irritatingly meandering because Clarke didn't know when to stop. The characters also appeared rather two-dimensional. The Harry Potter books I could hardly put down because every word counts and J.K Rowling never wanders off the subject. Her characters are three-dimensional and so are wholly believable despite the fabulistic nature of the books. Clarke's book, addressed to adults, also is . . .

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