Harry Potter is everywhere these days. Although there is a media juggernaut surrounding these books (and the new movie), it's the kind of 24/7 coverage I can tolerate. Now I'm adding my voice to this phenomenon because I want to document how much I love these books. Someday, my kids will really get a kick out of this!
I won't go so far as to say that Harry Potter affected my life, but J.K. Rowling's books have certainly enriched my life. Even more, these books have enriched the lives of so many other people on this planet, especially children. I love seeing a child reading or getting excited about reading. As a child I was obsessed with reading. Instead of grounding me, my parents took away my books for a week. It was "punishment" to me if I had to go outside and play with my sister instead of finishing my library book. Every summer, my goal was to read 20-30 books or more. I started a class library in the second grade and wouldn't allow the popular Garfield comic books because they didn't have enough text. Okay, I was a nerd...and still am. But reading really is FUNdamental, and if Harry were in my life then, I probably would have grown up even more obsessed with reading.
I discovered the Harry Potter books while working at the UNM Bookstore. What a dream job that was for me; we were allowed to read the trade books without purchasing them as long as they were kept in great condition. I started my job at the bookstore right after Book 4 (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) was released. I think that book really fueled the Harry Potter craze, what with all the midnight release parties and the plot speculations. None of the movies had been released yet, so the books were still in their pure form (more on that in a bit). So, one day I picked up Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone...and I was a goner.
I devoured the first two books, the shortest in the series. When I got to the third book (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), I had truly fallen in love. J.K. Rowling created a world of characters that I cared about and I could not wait to see what happened to them. Harry become a teenager and the storyline was getting darker, but also funnier, more poignant, and more real. Then I got to the fourth book, the longest in the series at that point, and I was so excited because I seriously love big, fat books. (When I was in eighth grade, I loved to tout the fact that I'd read all 1024 pages of Gone with the Wind. It still is one of my favorite novels.) After finishing the fourth book, I was thankful I'd only have to wait for three more books. I was actually glad I'd discovered the books "late" because I had four books to keep me occupied for a couple weeks.
When the fifth book (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix) was released, I holed myself up in my Carlisle apartment and read all day and all night long. I think it was then that Nate realized how crazy I was for books. (Yet he still married me!) Two years later, I was at Page One Bookstore before midnight, sharing in the excitement of the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince with hundreds of other New Mexicans. Nate was baffled why I would stay up that late and stand in a crowded bookstore for a "kid's book." These are not your typical children's books, as anyone who's read them will tell you. Parents should read the books with their kids, not only for the enjoyment factor, but for the opportunity to talk with their children about the life lessons and themes in the stories. Christians should read these books so they can understand that J.K. Rowling is not touting paganism, rather, she promotes love, peace, friendship, loyalty and honesty. Teachers should include these books in their curriculum because they have some of the most sophisticated vocabulary I've seen in children's books, as well as Latin phrases and Greek mythology. Most of all, people should read these books because they promote an active imagination, no matter what age you are.
That leads me to my criticism of the Harry Potter movies. They, like most movies, do not promote imagination. I absolutely believe that my sister and I developed such active imaginations because my parents encouraged reading, among other things, instead of plopping us in front of the television. The Harry Potter movies have great special effects, great British actors/actresses, and look brilliant on screen. But they will never be as good as the books. No director or actor can capture all the intricacies of J.K. Rowling's writing.
So, if you've seen the movies and not read the books, Friday at 12:01 a.m. is your chance to get all seven books, hole up in your house for a few weeks, and discover the story of the boy with the scar. This Friday night I'll be at Barnes and Noble with my husband, trying again to lure him under the spell of these books. It's certainly gotten a hold of me.
1 comment:
I'll post an HP entry too -- perhaps I'll address why I love both the books and the movies for different reasons. It's funny, too, how there are so many examples of adults falling in love with these books... I'll talk a bit about that too, if I have time after 2 p.m. today. Many things come to mind. I'll save them for the post. :)
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