So, ever since I first arrived in England, I've thought it was ridiculous that the Harry Potter books were published in separate "adult" and "children's" editions. The text is the same, the page count is the same, but the adult editions have sedate, dark colors, so they look more respectable for reading on the bus or train into work. C'mon! You're reading Harry Potter! Enjoy it! And with books this mega-popular, there is no chance at all that the commuters around you won't be able to see through the puny disguise of those dark, somber colors to realize that you are actually reading (gasp!) a fun kids' adventure book. So flaunt it instead of trying (and failing) to hide it!

But...

For the first time ever, I might actually end up buying the "adult" version of a Harry Potter book, because they've changed the cover art-style on the front cover of the kids' version, and the British kids' cover of Book Seven (click to enlarge the image for full, rosy-cheeked magnitude)...is not good. I really don't like it. On the other hand, the adult cover is undeniably boring. Not to mention the embarrassment I would feel at buying one of the adult ones after sneering at the whole concept for the past 5 years.

Sigh. It's this kind of tragic, earth-shaking dilemma that's shaped the careers of so many classic Shakespearean heroes...

Meanwhile, I just read a really interesting blog entry (at Romancing the Blog) by Barbara Caridad Ferrer, called "A rose by any other name would...", about her decision (or rather, her publisher's decision) to sell her books in different genres under different names, and the way her ethnicity (or rather, other people's stereotypes about her ethnicity) ended up affecting that decision. Hmm.