Farewell Harry

It's no secret I'm a huge Harry Potter fan. I started reading the HP series around 2003 when some of the early books made their way to paperback. I was surprised at how quickly I breezed through the books, finding them full of extraordinary detail and tales of adventure and friendship. I think I read books 1-4 in one summer. Then I had to wait for book 5. As soon as it came out, I remember rushing to buy a copy before heading to the lake with Marty's family. I was pregnant with Avery, on the lake in a boat and while everyone else was skiing, I had my head buried in that book the entire time. Then came book 6, and finally book 7. I bought that book on a Saturday and asked Marty to watch the girls all day for me. I read it in one day. Along the way, I have seen all of the movies. Sometimes at the theater, sometimes on DVD. They are cute, and fun to watch, but nowhere as magical as JK Rowling's Harry.

I have always been thrilled that Mackenzie is such a great reader, and I had secretly hoped she would love Harry too. She asked to read the books 3 summers ago, when she was 7. That first summer, I let her read books 1 and 2. She loved them and begged me to let her read further, but I made her wait. I knew the older books needed more maturity. The summer she was 8, she read books 3, 4, and 5. Last summer she was finally allowed to read books 6 and 7. Harry has become a part of our summer landscape and we would have it no other way! We re-read the books together, we watch the movies together, we listen to podcasts, we have our own discussions about things like Jo's foreshadowing and storytelling styles. Nerdy? yes. Has it been extremely fun having something to bond over every summer? you bet.

When Mackenzie turned 10, I allowed her to see her first HP film in the theater last fall. Since it was during the school week, we could not go to the midnight movie, but it was our first opportunity to watch one of the films together in the theater. She has been geared up all summer long for the release of the final movie. We bought our tickets well in advance and set out for the theater with some caffeine for me and a Harry t-shirt for her. She loved seeing all of the fans dressed up in glasses and cloaks. The movie experience was great with the entire audience clapping and cheering Harry on. We laughed. We cried. And for 2 days we have talked about our favorite parts and lines of the film. It has been so fun to share this journey with my little reader!