Because this is one of the more interesting books of recent years, creating an interesting story, showing the tragedy and comedy of a very logical and rational boy who tries to interact with chaos of humanity, and the book manages to work in many discussions of science, rationality, politics, Bayesian statistics, and the potential and limits of each. If this book had used an original setting with renamed characters but was identical otherwise, it would be hailed as a modern genre classic.
If you have any interest in fantasy / sci-fi / or the original Potter setting, this book also deliberately sends up or subverts many of the tropes common to this setting. The application to the fantasy settings is particularly interesting due to the main character attempting to apply the scientific method in a world where people can perform magic and do so without questioning where it comes from, and the book therefore tries to take Clarke's old maxim to its limit.
Is it literature? I personally think so. Will it be read in fifty years? I have no idea and care little. Do adults need to only sit down with incredibly serious books which have been approved by a set of gatekeepers? No. You're missing out on a world of weird and wonderful things if you limit yourself in such a way.
>If this book had used an original setting with renamed characters but was identical otherwise, it would be hailed as a modern genre classic.
If that were true, then wouldn't it have happened already? 50 Shades of Gray is a famous example of fanfiction that was well-received enough that it got rewritten into a standalone work. I wasn't impressed. I see no reason not to interpret "best fanfiction" as "least stinky poop".
If you have any interest in fantasy / sci-fi / or the original Potter setting, this book also deliberately sends up or subverts many of the tropes common to this setting. The application to the fantasy settings is particularly interesting due to the main character attempting to apply the scientific method in a world where people can perform magic and do so without questioning where it comes from, and the book therefore tries to take Clarke's old maxim to its limit.
Is it literature? I personally think so. Will it be read in fifty years? I have no idea and care little. Do adults need to only sit down with incredibly serious books which have been approved by a set of gatekeepers? No. You're missing out on a world of weird and wonderful things if you limit yourself in such a way.