Harry Potter: Humor

At a London auction on June 26, a first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is expected to sell for 7,000 pounds ($14,000 US). A thousand novels were printed in the first batch, but since then, J.K. Rowling has sold more than 325 million Harry Potter books worldwide.

And counting.

Perhaps Rowling's family-friendly humor contributes to her sales. Posted on MuggleNet, the following gag is from the first Potter novel in the series:

"Now, you two - Behave yourselves. If I get one word that you've blown up a toilet or -"

"Blown up a toilet? We've never blown up a toilet."

"Great idea though, thanks, Mum."

Toilet jokes are becoming an industry standard in children's humor, though Rowling's wit isn't limited to the bathroom alone. Her description of Dudley is also pretty endearing:

"Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel. Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig."

Novelists have to compete against the rest of the entertainment industry, and thus far, it's been pretty hard to trump sit-com saturated cable TV. Generally, however, the only difference between a "good" novel and a "boring" novel - or a "good" show and a "boring" one - is the audience's attachment to the story. And laughter is perhaps the shortest distance between writer and reader.