Harry Potter

In 1997, J.K. Rowling, a graduate of Exeter University, became an over-night sensation when she introduced the world to a boy named Harry Potter. The rags-to-riches life of Harry is a parallel of Rawling's own life. Rawling, a divorced, unemployed, single-mother living on public assistance, breathed life into Harry and his comrades on cocktail napkins in a café she frequented. After numerous rejections from publishers, Bloomsbury Publishers took a chance, and to borrow a trite expression, "the rest is history." Since the release of the first (of the rumored seven book series) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, or Philosopher's Stone as it is known abroad, three additional installments of Harry's life have been published. In 1999, the first three Harry Potter books filled the top three positions of the New York Times best sellers list.

It is a common misunderstanding that the Harry Potter series is for juveniles, but I believe that there is something within the books that applies to all ages. Old and young alike can take a lesson from Harry Potter, in life everyone is faced with the fears that this story illustrates, and the strength and dedication it takes in order to do so, but it also demonstrates the rewards for the strength and dedication. Which is why the world, including myself, has read the four books in current circulation several times while it anxiously awaits the release of book five Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. For instance, the third book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, has many elements of a "who-done-it." This book offers plenty of mystery, excitement, and intrigue for the older readers and is mixed with just enough humor and fantasy for the younger readers to appreciate, a...

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... has taken the world by storm. Finally, children have been offered a role model that encourages them to use their minds. The Harry Potter series encourages readers to think hard about issues in their lives, and offers a sense of relief, in that, everyone experiences struggles and we must look within ourselves to find the answers. And even though the subject matter of witchcraft has been protested from many different arenas, saying that these books are guides on how to perform spells and create potions, it is my firm belief that these stories do nothing of the kind and that all the protesting is accomplishing is adding fuel to the fire and increasing the desire for people to read, and isn't that the goal anyway? Therefore, it is my hope that the protests continue on and even more people will be driven to read and experience the fascinating world of Harry Potter.