In terms of loyalty to canon etc. I love the alternative take in MOR. There's only one thing that really bugs me on that front, which is the use of American language throughout. Astonishing how much it rankles for Harry to say he's 'gotten' something.
This is certainly bugging me also, and I'm an American. Given how many people have commented about this, I have to ask if it would take Eliezer that much effort to have a British friend skim through it before Eliezer posts them? The effort level doesn't seem to be that high.
(Incidentally, I have other objections also, I think Eliezer underestimates the amount in canon which the wizarding world is influenced by the enlightenment- there are mentions in canon of research of journals (beginning of book three for example).)
I think that might help. I honestly think that potential readers could find it seriously offputting, and Eliezer's obviously fine with editing previous posts so it could be made consistent too.
The odd thing is that I'm abnormally unconcerned by American accents in films of English stories etc: it's the written word that I find it so strange for. Possibly because a level of informality makes it more obvious.
I don't have the books to hand, but is research in journals necessarily enlightenment? You can see philosophical debate etc. going right back to scholas...
This may be old news to some people, especially the Russian speakers, but I didn't see an article about it here.
In 1999, Kirill Yeskov, a Russian paleontologist, wrote The Last Ringbearer, a 270-page take on Lord of the Rings from the point of view of a medic in Mordor's dying armies who is also a "skeptic and a rationalist." In fact, Mordor represents the forces of reason in this retelling of the story. As a Nazgúl (himself a former mathematician) explains, Mordor is "the little oasis of Reason in which your light-minded civilization had so comfortably nestled." Barad-dur is "that amazing city of alchemists and poets, mechanics and astronomers, philosophers and physicians, the heart of the only civilization in Middle-earth to bet on rational knowledge and bravely pitch its barely adolescent technology against ancient magic."
The story has been newly translated and is available in free PDF form -- in English and the original Russian. There's a recent review from Salon as well.