The years between 1917 and 1930 form the first period

Reception1
Rowling has enjoyed enormous commercial success as an author. Her Harry Potter series topped bestseller lists,spawned a global media franchise including films and video games,and was translated into at least 70 languages by 2018.The first three Harry Potter books occupied the top three spots of The New York Times bestseller list for more than a year; they were then moved to a newly created children's list.The final four books – Goblet of Fire,Order of the Phoenix,Half-Blood Prince, and Deathly Hallows– each set records as the fastest-selling books in the UK or US. As of 2018, the series had sold more than 500 million copies according to Bloomsbury.Neither of Rowling's later works, The Casual Vacancy and the Cormoran Strike series, have been as successful, though Casual Vacancy was still a bestseller in the UK within weeks of its release.Harry Potter's popularity has been attributed to factors including the nostalgia evoked by the boarding-school story, the endearing nature of Rowling's characters, and the accessibility of her books to a variety of readers. According to Julia Eccleshare, the books are "neither too literary nor too popular, too difficult nor too easy, neither too young nor too old", and hence bridge traditional reading divides
Critical response to Harry Potter has been more mixed.Harold Bloom regards Rowling's prose as poor and her plots as conventional,while Jack Zipes argues that the series would not be successful if it were not formulaic.Zipes states that the early novels have the same plot: in each book, Harry escapes the Dursleys to visit Hogwarts, where he confronts Lord Voldemort and then heads back successful.Rowling's prose has been described as simple and not innovative; Le Guin, like several other critics, considers it "stylistically ordinary".According to the novelist A. S. Byatt, the books reflect a dumbed-down culture dominated by soap operas and reality television.Thus, some critics argue, Harry Potter does not innovate on established literary forms; nor does it challenge readers' preconceived ideas. Conversely, scholar Philip Nel rejects such critiques as "snobbery" that reacts to the novels' popularity,whereas Mary Pharr argues that Harry Potter's conventionalism is the point: by amalgamating literary forms familiar to her readers, Rowling invites them to "ponder their own ideas".Other critics who see artistic merit in Rowling's writing include Marina Warner, who views Harry Potter as part of an "alternative geanology" of English literature that she traces from Edmund Spenser to Christina Rossetti, and Michiko Kakutani, who praises Rowling's fictional world and the darker tone of the series' later entries.

Reception of Rowling's later works has varied among critics. The Casual Vacancy, her attempt at literary fiction, drew mixed reviews. Some critics praised its characterisation, while others stated that it would have been better if it contained magic. The Cormoran Strike series was more warmly received as a work of British detective fiction, even as some reviewers noted that its plots are occasionally contrived.Theatrical reviews of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child were highly positive.Fans have been more critical of the play's use of time travel, changes to characters' personalities, and perceived queerbaiting in Albus and Scorpius' relationship, leading some to question its connection to the Harry Potter canon.