As like so many others in this listserv and everywhere else, I feel the need to
share my Harry Potter saga.? I like to brag that I loved Harry Potter before Harry
became the phenomenon that he did in this country and every other (rather like the
song, "I loved country before country was cool).? When my son was in the 4th grade,
there was a Scholastic Bookfair at his elementary school.? I was on the lookout for
books that would be of interest to him, as this age is where so many boys start to
wander away from reading, and there were two hardback copies of Harry Potter and
the Sorcerer's Stone on the sell cases.? I picked one up, and the rest, as they
say, is history.? I knew of no one else who was reading this book or had read it,
and the teachers weren't aware of it either.? Can you imagine, only two copies, and
I bought the only copy sold?? Unbelievable!? Well, that was the beginning of my
son's and mine journey through the Harry Potter books.? For the first two or three
bo!
oks, we only bought one copy and read it together.? I know that I read the first
one out loud to my son.? After that, we each had to have our own copy and read them
at the same time, often on the couch together.? We also bought CDs of several of
the books to listen to, just to hear the story again.?? When my son went to
Governor's Scholar during the publication of the 6th book, I had it sent to him,
and we read it via long-distance together.? During the reading of HP7 last weekend,
we actually read in separate rooms (didn't want any distractions) and would check
occasionally to see what chapter the other one was on.? We finished last Sunday
night within 20 minutes of each other.? What a fantastic journey reading these
books together has been, creating a bond that will stay with us forever.? As so
many book lovers do, I treasure the literary moments in life, especially those with
my children.? The two that stand out with my son are when we finished reading To
Kill a Mockingb!
ird together, and he said, "Wow, that was great!" and the Harry Potter
books, with the anticipation and reading of them.? He just turned 20 years old,
and I credit the Harry Potter books in part for our close relationship.? Ilene
Cooper said it best in the June 1, 2007 issue of Booklist when she commented on the
Harry Potter phenomenon, "Not everyone gets to live through a cultural phenomenon,
but if you do, it is something you never forget, the sort of experience that bonds
a generation."? My only exception to her statement is the use of "generation" at
the end, for it is obvious that the Harry Potter books transcend age lines and bond
not just a generation, but generations.? Cooper's article is well worth reading,
and as it was written before HP7's release, it contains no spoilers.? It can be
accessed at http://www.booklistonline.com/default.aspx?page=booksforyouth??
Kathy Reel
Librarian
Owensboro, KY
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