Harry Potter and Skipping the Craze When I was a kid

Only to Read it in my Thirties

My disclaimer, I had just discovered Lord of the Rings and was too busy journeying into Mordor to be bothered by wizardly-teenage angst. Come on the fate of Middle Earth lay in Frodo’s hands.

So, that’s it. I skipped out on the Harry Potter hype; skipped the movies; skipped the books. Closed my eyes to the online reviews, spoilers, and all the rest. I simply shut it all out—incredibly well too. I didn’t even find out Dobby was killed until Rowling spoiled it for me a couple of weeks ago on her Twitter feed.

I can’t blame her. I only blame myself. Tear.

Anyway, I was surprised by the first book. It was good, but I thought it was just that… good. But as I continued I was very, very, pleasantly surprised/not surprised.

As I read through, I found some interesting themes I would like to explore in a couple of upcoming essays, so stay tuned.

I tell you what, I finished the 7 books in about a month, so was the wait worth it? Yes. I can’t help but think how a 14-year-old me would have reacted to the books, but I definitely know that I was fooled, taken-for-a-trip, and befuddled plenty. Rowling has a magnificent way of unraveling narrative knots that I absolutely fell in love with.

But, you all must know all this, because you know I’m only several years late to the fandom.