Note: If you're feeling lazy and don't actually feel like reading all of this post (no worries, I've been there), can you at least scroll to the bottom paragraph and contemplate responding to my questions?
I've decided to write about Harry Potter for my research project. I know it's an obvious pick, but I think it's fitting. However, the Harry Potter series has been a constant in my life ever since I was very little.
Almost every year my family makes the 12-14 hour drive to Virginia for family reunion, and the summer I turned five my grandpa had the brilliant idea to purchase Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone for family entertainment on the car ride. My mom, Taharka, and I were all enamored by the story, and it soon thereafter received a spot in our nightly reading rotation. I loved having my mom read the story to me because she was a master at changing her tone of voice and giving the main characters different distinctive voices.
That all happened over the summer, but by the time school rolled around -- I was in kindergarten that year -- we had finished the book. I wanted to hear the story again but my mom was too busy to read to me every night. I tried to get Taharka to read to me, and that worked for a while, but he never mastered the voices the way my mom had. I decided it was up to me to just read the book by myself. I know I struggled with some of the words, but I had already heard the story before and knew the gist of what was happening, and by the end of kindergarten I had finished the book all by myself.
After that, I convinced my mom to buy the rest of the Harry Potter books (that were out at that time) and my obsession with Harry Potter grew over the years. I still remember fourth grade me lining up outside of Pages for All Ages when the 7th book came out. Sometime within a year after I finished the 7th book, I became unsatisfied by simply re-reading my Harry Potter books (of which I have read each over 20 times) and I somehow stumbled across fanfiction.
I always have a hard time explaining fanfiction, so I googled it: Fanfiction is "fiction written by a fan of, and featuring characters from, a particular TV series, movie, etc." In my case, it was a book series. Though I do sometimes write my own fanfiction, I have never posted it anywhere online and, instead, am an avid reader of other people's stories. I currently probably spend a lot more free time reading Harry Potter than it is socially acceptable to admit; I found some really great stories and the crossover opportunities between other series (eg. Percy Jackson, Avengers) are boundless.
Though I really like Harry Potter fanfiction, I could never dream of giving up the original series. I have read the books over and over again, and I turn to them when I'm sad. It's such an addiction that even my blog title, Just A Bit Of A Saving People Thing, is from Hermione telling Harry "...don't you think you've got a bit of a -- a -- saving people thing?" in Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix.
I even have a whole section of my bookshelf in my room dedicated to Harry Potter; it holds my private collection of all the books which my mom got me in England, other HP spin-off books such as The Tales of Beedle the Bard and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, my wand and butterbeer mug from HP World, the bracelet I made at Computer Science GAMES camp last year with a deathly hallows emblem and with a light up LED in the middle, etc. I also found a light switch cover with the Dumbledore quote: "Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times if one only remembers to turn on the light."
Sorry this was so long, but I was just trying to emphasize that I love Harry Potter. I don't know why; it might be because the series has been integrated into my life since I was such a young age, it might be something completely different. However, I know that some people don't like the series, or do but not to the extent I do. Or you might love the series even more than me. I would appreciate if you guys would please comment if you do or do not like the Harry Potter series. If you don't like the series, try to explain why, I won't judge anyone.
Here are some potential questions, maybe pick a few to answer:
What age were you when you were introduced to the series?
How did you discover the series?
Which book was your favorite?
Is there any particular aspect of the book you like most?
Have any of you guys been aware of HP fanfiction?
Did you read the books or just watch the movies? Which do you like better?
Do you like the series or have you never really been into it?
Anything else you can think to add would be nice :) Seriously, it'll be really embarrassing for my if no one answers anything.
I like your long post! Also my answers to your questions, in order, are: 10 years old, a gift from a family friend, Half Blood Prince, I like everything except for the boring beginnings of the books, yes I'm very aware of HP fanfiction, I like reading the books and watching the movies equally, I like the series, but I could understand if somebody didn't like it.
ReplyDeleteIs there any particular reason you like HBP? And would you mind being mentioned in my paper (I wont be offended if you say no)?
DeleteI missed the Harry Potter boat--I was past the target age when the first book came out--but I often wonder if I would have gotten into it if I'd encountered it as a kid. My son got into the first few books a few years ago, when he was 7-9 or so, but he got stalled in I think the fifth book and never finished it. I've talked to some aficionados and they've told me the series gets darker and more complex as it unfolds, and he should take another crack at it now that he's older (11, almost 12) and a more sophisticated reader (he's torn through Percy Jackson and Hunger Games--so the "darkness" shouldn't bother him!).
ReplyDeleteBut I'm just glad I now get the allusion in your blog title. I always liked it, but I didn't know it was a reference to Hermione's funny rhetorical question to hero-Harry. I like it even more now! (And it makes it perfectly appropriate that you're writing on this series for your project--it was already on your mind when the class began.)
Thanks :) Yea, the books definitely get darker, but I had started reading them at a young age and I wasn't going to stop. Plus, Taharka read books that were 'darker' than whatever I would typically read because he was older, but then I'd just go and read whatever he read anyways. So I guess the darkness never really bothered me, I was just always in awe that Harry continued to survive.
DeleteBut yes, I highly recommend that you son resume reading the series :)
I was young (5 or 6, like you) when my mom introduced it to me as a bedtime story. My mom was also good at making distinct character voices, and I liked it at the time because the chapters were long, so I didn't have to go to bed quite so early. I loved Hermione because she was intelligent and witty, and I loved Hagrid because he was just so loveable! My favorite book is probably the fourth one, Goblet of Fire, because so many things happened. Or else the Deathly Hallows (I really liked the ending). The aspect I liked most about the books wasn't their content, though I definitely appreciated that as well; it was the social aspect of my mom reading them to me at bedtime (until the 7th came out -- we mail-ordered it and I remember being super sick, so I read it myself). When I think of Harry Potter, I remember this distinct feeling of childhood, this kind of warmth and security (which is a little related to the content -- the whole Fenrir Greyback part was kind of like being in a parked car in a storm).
ReplyDeleteI didn't really like the fourth movie, which kind of tainted my view of the fourth book, but I thought/think all of the other movies are really good -- though not as good as the book, in any case. I've never checked HP Fanfic out (I think I knew that it existed), but I definitely will when school gets less hectic.
Would you be okay with being mentioned in my paper? It's fine if not.
DeleteSure!
DeleteI'm really not sure what age I was when I discovered the series... I remember seeing people playing HP games at the Urbana library and a bit after that my dad started reading them to me (I think we had a false start because like a lot of people I was not into the boring Privet Drive stuff). I was actually talking a bit about best/worst HP books recently and I realized that I don't know if I can really decide that because I kind of view the books as a whole, and with a lot of nostalgia and affection to cloud my judgment. I don't think I've read any HP fanfiction besides maybe My Immortal for kicks... there definitely is a bit of a stigma around that although I know there's some good stuff out there. I definitely like the books tons better because of course they're the originals and have a lot more emotional baggage. I like the movies but I got kind of mad about a lot of the screwups (I got really angry after the end of the last movie with the Voldemort fight). If it isn't obvious from this comment I definitely love the series and it was a big part of my childhood (I own all the books, reread them multiple times, went to a lot of midnight releases, won a trivia contest at one of them, etc etc). Good luck with your paper!
ReplyDeleteI like how you made me skip your wonderful post down to the questions: I need to start doing that, if that's okay with you. In terms of the harry potter series, I will admit it: I haven't ever read any of the books, and I don't plan to either. Harry Potter, the hero of the west, is a story which just doesn't attract me for some reason. And the only reason I ever saw the movies was because of Ralf Fiennes (the guy that portrays Voldemort). And that just caused me to hate the series even more-- Voldemort's last scenes, and the entire ending is so cheesy and unneccessary and he was also portrayed as a stupid villain (typical endings in animated heros vs. villains). Not a whole lot of people are like me but my opinion is my opinion.
ReplyDeleteI was six when I was first introduced to the series. Me and my mother took turns reading the chapters aloud to each other. I still read the books often. The aspect I like the most about the book is the plot. I prefer the books to the movies, and I am still really into the series.
ReplyDelete