A few days ago I was hanging out with a friend of mine, and whilst I was there so was her best friend. The best friend was going on about her upcoming birthday and said that one thing that she'd really like to get (although not likely to) is a boxed set of the UK versions of the Harry Potter books.
I asked her what the difference was, and she claimed that the US versions were edited to remove Brit slang and spellings, as well as some cultural references. I have a bit of a hard time believing the idea, as 'translating' English to English seems like a waste of time and money.

So, this is just a general question, is there a large difference between books written in English that are published separately in the US and UK? And Canada and Australia as well I suppose. I'm just curious now.

As far as I am aware, the only difference is with the titling and cover art. I may be wrong though.

If I were American, I would feel cheated if that were so. When I read American books, I enjoy absorbing pieces of American culture. I would hope it would be the same in reverse.

http://www.uta.fi/FAST/US1/REF/potter.html

Differences between the UK and US editions of the first four books.

Wow. Really?
OK, I'm an Anglophile so I understand (and use) a bit of Brit slang, but is it that hard to sort out the difference? 'Course, maybe not for younger readers.

Happens with a number of books... "A Clockwork Orange" had its final chapter removed in the American version, for example. Titles get changed too; "Northern Lights" (by Philip Pullman) had the name changed to "The Golden Compass".

Who knows?

I heard each country has a ban list for books. Or it was that the west/developed countries shared a ban list.

I can understand a few of those changes, like "wellington boots" into "rubber boots", but...jelly into Jell-O? Changing room into locker room? Teddy into the teddy? Is anyone really going to not understand those things vs what they were changed into?

Jello comes in jars?

Yes, and you spread it onto toast and use it in totally not-disgusting sandwiches.

But jello is gelatin not pectin with fruit and sugar like jelly... :

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/3/33916/1666837-thats_the_joke_super.jpg

The glasses they do nothing.

It would seem that people from the USA are so stupid and xenophobic that they are unable to understand cultural differences, and get terrified when they encounter them. Because of this publishers and studios must adapt everything they wish to sell in the USA, otherwise they risk causing panic and societal collapse.

On closer inspection they are loafers.

Oh wow, I find this quite sad. It is a literary work (modern classic one too I suppose) written in their own language and they still need to change it. If I read something written by an American and set in America I expect to read American English, it adds to the immersion since it is set in the states. If I was American I would really expect the same when reading a British book set in Britain, that it should be in British English because that is more fun for characters who are in-fact British... or did they change Hogwarts so it is in America too?

Maybe they have the excuse that it is for kids who will get confused, but really I don't think it matters, if anything they should have written the American words in brackets after the original text to keep the atmosphere and also to help the American kids learn more about British language. Nevermind

Thats actually insane. I imagine Rowling must have okay'd all the changes though.

motorbike -> motorcycle
Philosopher's Stone -> Sorcerer's Stone
wardrobe -> closet
treacle toffee -> treacle fudge
cupboard -> closet
monkey-like -> monkeyish
whilst -> while
Gorilla arms -> gorilla-ish arms


queuing -> lining up
disused -> unused
fortnight -> two weeks
ice-creams -> ice cream
prised -> wrenched
treacle-thick -> glutinous
gormless -> clueless


One Hundred -> One Thousand




..I'm stopping now. My categorisation is getting confused by the sheer bulk of weirdness, my bar for inclusion increasing with every line...

quits - even
As in lets call it even instead of lets call it quits? I'm confused, how are they quitting if it's even?

Not particulary surprised about this, I mean, the same thing happens to some japanese video games, they get very US-ified when they are translated. Although it is fortunately more rare this days and was a lot more common back in the 80s and 90s. Same with japanese comics that were translated back in the 90s.

I think it's not necessarily about understanding but how well they read: I find that stuff written in a form of English I'm not as familiar with tends to not read very smoothly when I come up against "incorrect" spellings and the like, and one could say it looks rather unprofessional when localisation hasn't been done correctly. Not a big deal when it's just a discussion on an internet forum, but I can see why people might object if it's something they're paying for.

Jelly's the gelatine stuff from a British perspective. The fruit, sugar and pectin thing is jam, though I understand the American version tends to not have lumps of fruit in it.

The US does it with movies, a movie wouldnt be changed from the US version to Australia, ive seen British movies that have been mangled when transferred to the US version, we usually get the US versions here, scattered amongst those you get the European release. But never had differing versions of the same book to check, id hope we always get the original text.

That's different though, since the linguistic barrier aside, Japan and the US are culturally very different. From what I've seen there isn't that much cultural difference between the world's Anglophones. Sure, we like to play up some of the differences for laughs, but an Anglophone person from the US, Canada, UK or Australia/NZ would be right at home at any of these other countries.

Rowling's explanation is that they changed words which have completely different meanings in the US, but as 1Samildanach has pointed out they didn't really stop there.

It would be horrible if American kids had to learn that there is more than one form of proper written English.

"That bogan's tracky-daks are a bit daggy, aye?"