I confess, for a long time I felt that Harry Potter couldn't possibly impact me like other series had--The Chronicles of Narnia, The Little House Books, Lord of the Rings.
But I was wrong. I'm reading these books for the first time as I read them aloud to the girls. We started them last year, right before New Year's Eve 2013 on our road trip down & back to Florida. We've been watching each movie as we finish each book. We're in the last book now.
I am going to re-read them all again when we finish...which will be very soon, sadly.
This is our Halloween picture from this year. I think I've posted it already. Since then, Aunt Becky has given the girls their Christmas presents early--"real" versions of Harry's and Hermione's wands, which would authenticate this photo even more. (So would a scar--would you believe both Amelia and I forgot to put a scar on her forehead??)
Here are some of my favorite things about the Harry Potter series:
- Harry and his friends seem real. They have real quirks, real faults, and real strengths. They fight and they make up. They work at love. They struggle, they fail, they experience victory. They grow into teenagers who have attitudes but also feelings and that unique maturity of unadulterated youth.
- Harry's unique power against the dark lord has nothing to do with himself, but with the fact that his parents--his mother in particular--sacrificed their own lives to save his.
- Most of the characters have a very real depth. For protagonists, their faults eventually show themselves and there are always consequences. For antagonists, there is always something that makes the reader empathize, understand, and gain insight into what makes them who they are.
And...some of my favorite quotes:
It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. (Albus Dumbledore, Sorcerer's Stone)
It is our choices...that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. (Albus Dumbledore, Chamber of Secrets)
Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light. (Dumbledore, Prisoner of Azkaban)
If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals. (Sirius Black, Goblet of Fire)
Indeed, your failure to understand that there are things much worse than death has always been your greatest weakness. (Dumbledore to Voldemort, Order of the Phoenix)
Age is foolish and forgetful when it underestimates youth. (Dumbledore, Half-Blood Prince)
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