Barry Cunningham

     The editor who discovered Harry Potter.
     He was recently interviewed in an article for Fortune Magazine, "How I Make Decisions." Anastasia Suen turned me onto this in her mighty fine blog. The quote so entirely nails the purpose of children's literature, I want it somewhere where I can find it easily:

     "I choose books purely based on what I believe children will react to. If you carry the child within you, that's what works. You need a real ability to feel the hope, wonder, burning sense of injustice, fear, or rage of childhood—an unfettered mind that still dreams, that goes with the truth of story. I absolutely bet on my confidence in what children will like." - Barry Cunningham