Platinum Jubilee Judge Defends Choice To Remove J.K. Rowling From Reading List

Platinum Jubilee judge Susheila Nasta defended the choice to cut J.K. Rowling’s books from Queen Elizabeth II’s reading list in honor of her 70 years on the throne.

During the emeritus professor of modern literature at Queen Mary University of London’s interview for BBC Radio 4’s Tuesday, Nasta said there were several reason’s that Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series was cut out of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Reading list specifically the first installment, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” and that’s because it’s “a children’s book,” reported the Independent.

The professor also explained that the whole purpose of the list is to highlight books that others “might not have read before,” noting that the Harry Potter series has sold more than “500 million books worldwide since 1997,” not to mention all the billions in profits from the eight-part movie franchise.

The famed British author didn’t make the final cut after the list of 153 books was shortened to only include 70 books by Commonwealth authors in honor of the queen’s 70 year reign.

Platinum Jubilee reading list judge explains why JK Rowling was snubbed https://t.co/iV75KjhNnS

— The Independent (@Independent) April 19, 2022

“The list is a real opportunity to discover stories from across continents,” Suzy Klein, head of arts and classical music at BBC TV shared as she noted that the books chosen were those “that we might never have otherwise read” and “authors whose work deserves a spotlight to be shone on it.”

The piece noted that the list was compiled with the help of librarians across the United Kingdom along with input from readers in 54 countries during a search that lasted five months.

Some have pointed out that if the “Harry Potter” books are for “children,” then they question why Australian author Markus Zusak’s 2005 “The Book Thief” made the cut, despite many considering it to be a children’s book as well.

According to Amazon’s description it says “The Book Thief” is for teens and young adults. And the book is about the Holocaust.

“Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books,” part of the description read. “With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.”

The removal of her book comes after Rowling recently slammed a new transgender bill in Scotland that would lower the age at which a person can legally change their gender to from 18 to 16, a move she said will hurt “the most vulnerable” women in our society, as previously reported by The Daily Wire.

The famed British author has been the target of trans-rights activists because of her unwavering defense of biological women’s rights and protections.

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