Getting Into Harry Potter

[Ryan Stoddard]

I got into Harry Potter after I heard an audio tape play in class in the fourth grade, It was for the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. It was in 1999. I read my first book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of fire sometime later. I had no other books for a while, so I could not read them. That left me reading the same book about 25 times.
What kept me reading was the excellent details contained within the books. Later I got some money and got the other 3 and the two “school booksâ€￾. After that, Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix came out and that took me a while to read. When I was finished the 5th , I learned a lot more about Harry and what happens in the book.
Later on the 6th book came out and I am not saying anything on that. I then searched the Internet and came about this site and then searched it a little and then I joined. Now a few weeks later I am signed up for my classes and am writing this essay. I am continuing to read the books and it was great that I had the curiosity to pick up Harry Potter and read it.

[Kate McGregor]

How did I get into Harry Potter?

Well... One day my aunt asked me if I had heard of those Harry Potter books. I said no, and she told me they were about a boy who was a wizard. That's nice I thought, and went about my merry way. Then one day my church held some special meeting to talk about The Evil Harry Potter and how all of the kids who were reading it were in danger of being eternally damned. Being the deviant that I am I went and read the books.
Then, shortly thereafter, I went to see the Chamber of Secrets movie...In Secret!

I dragged one of my friends to go with, and then she got hooked...

So, I have been addicted ever since.... and am now an ickle firstie here at HOL

Kate McGregor (Ravenclaw ka604 USA)

[Silva Saturn]

How I got into Harry Potter? A few Christmases ago I was traviling home from my families' get together, and some how caught the worst stomach flu I ever had, or hope to have. When I arrived home, all I wanted to do was crash by the toilet. Before I could retire my nephew showed up with his mom to wish me a merry Christmas and drop off my gift, the four box set of Harry Potter. I thanked them, and took the first one to the bathroom with me to keep me company. All night I read and got sick, read some more, got sick. It was terrible, but at the same time wonderful. I spent the next three days on the couch recovering and reading. After I finished the first four, I felt much better, maybe Harry healed me. After that I was hooked, and have been counting down the days till each new book is released.

[Rhiannon Jones]

How did I get into Harry Potter? Well I didn't get into them immediately, they were something I was vaguely aware of but never totally made me rush out and buy one. It was only when there was a lot of hype on them in 1999 when I truly got interested in picking one up. However it was only in the summer of that year I decided to buy one with a voucher I was given by my primary school as I was leaving for secondary school and they were making a bit of a fuss as we were the last of the millennium. However I got the Prisoner of Azkaban first as it had just come out and I think it was on a low price or something. I picked it up and read it and just fell in love with the characters that just seemed so cool and the idea of witches and wizards and the things they could do was amazing. JK enthralled me with her third book and I knew I had to get the others and I did for Christmas and here we are six years later and me about to go into my final year of sixth form and I am still in love with the books and my love grows with every book I read. Apologies for lack of an interesting story!

Signed: Rhiannon Jones (Gryffindor, First Year, rh608, UK)

[Euvira Samara]

I was around 9 (give or take a bit) when I got into Harry Potter and I had never enjoyed reading at all. My mother always brought me new books that she insisted I read. One day she brought me Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. My first thought was that it was way to long! But she said everyone loved it and I should read it. So I did. After reading only the first chapter I wanted more. I kept reading it. I read a chapter a night (which is very impressive for a kid that hates reading) and before long I was done with it. Then I moved on to read Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and then Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. As I read each book I slowly grew more and more obsessed. By then I was patiently awaiting the arrival of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. By the time I was done with that I had was counting down to the next book and the next book. Now I am waiting for the last book (and not very patiently anymore.) So, just because my mother insisted for me to read, I got into Harry Potter, one of the greatest things in my life!

[Meghan McLaws]

Meghan McLaws (Gryffindor, me655, USA)

Well, it's actually kind of an amusing story. It was a sunday afternoon (I know this because it was cleaning day and I was suppose to be vaccumming my room) and my sister and I were chilling in our room. She was suppose to be dusting her book shelf. The conversation we had once she pulled out the The Goblet of Fire went as such

Brit- Why don't you read this?
Me- Because it's way too long
B- But you would love it
M- No
B- What if I read you it to you until you can read it on your own.
M- *silence*
B- well?
M- Fine

From there she proceeded to read me the first chapter. When she read the last line, she sighed and told me she had to take a shower to which I groaned and said fine. 2 minutes laster, once she was in the shower, I snuck in and proceed to read the rest of the book. It took me 2 weeks to finish the book, but I had never read the first 3, so I read the rest in reverse order, then read them again cronologically. I've been hooked ever since

[Prof. Kath Snape]

I first learned about Harry Potter in very early 2002. As I hate to read, books were never something I went shopping for. My oldest daughter, who was in her late 20's, said she thought she had found books, I might be willing to read. I really didn't think I would even get past the first couple of chapters. I told her I would try the first book, to see if I could get "into" it. Well that was the beginning of a love affair, I have had ever since with "Harry Potter". I couldn't get enough. I read one book after another. Taken in, as they say "hook line and sinker". I actualy finally bought all my own books, so my daughter could have hers back.
I now have all 3 movies, the first four audio books (gifts from my children) and have gotten crazy with the Harry Potter "Lego's". I have the Hogwarts Castle, Dumbledore's Office, Sirius Escape, Dueling Club, Hagrid's Hut and Snape's Office.
One wall in my bedroom is all Harry Potter Movie characters. I have enjoyed the last three years, attending "HP Classes", at another HP site. And now I have been introduced to HOL. I'm excitied to have signed up for three classes and hope to enjoy being here.
I knew I had become a Harry Potter fanatic, when I stood in line for hours, waiting for the midnight release of the HBP. I am now counting down the days, with my daughters, for the Goblet Of Fire movie, planning on getting our tickets, as soon as we can. I have to say it is fun to read, for the first time in my life.

[Risalyn Doyle]

How did I get into Harry Potter? To tell you the truth, when I first read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, I didn’t like it. My mother is against spending money unless it’s a necessity, like clothes, food, school supplies, or it’ll help me do better in school. So when Harry Potter came out, I didn’t know about it until my mother’s friend gave me her son’s copy of the first book. She handed it to me saying, “You haven’t read Harry Potter? Oh my goodness! Shane loves it. You should read it. Here, I’ll give you Shane’s copy of the book. He’s already read it anyways.â€￾ So I took the book, thanked her, and attempted to read the book that was snatching the hearts of the whole world. I hated it. Why? The whole book is about some random eleven-year-old kid who survived being killed by this “powerfulâ€￾ evil genius, grows up in the crappiest home ever, goes to some magic school, makes a few friends even though he could have made so many more because he was famous, goes to classes, makes enemies, hates homework, breaks a lot of rules, and saves the world by touching some weirdo freak with two heads in the face. It really didn’t make much sense to me.

All the other fourth graders in my class loved Harry. Harry this, Harry that, occasionally some red head named Ron and his many brothers, more Harry, some more Harry, something about a girl named Her-mi-one, and, of course, finishing it off with Harry. They talked about him all the time. Sometimes I wanted to strangle someone, preferably that Harry dude himself. Finally, in fifth grade, the Harry phenomenon died down, and I was able to walk through the halls without hearing anything about Harry Potter or some weird “magical world.â€￾

As I made the transition from fifth grade to sixth grade, I “maturedâ€￾ into what most people call a “teenager.â€￾ Most of my friends from elementary school went to a different middle school, so I was stuck trying to make new friends, keep up with the truck loads of homework teachers were giving, and find time for practicing piano, cello, and tae kwon do. It wasn’t easy. But one fateful day, in history class, the teacher put us into groups of two. Since I didn’t know anyone in that class, I silently thanked the teacher for choosing partners, instead of letting us choose. My partner, a fellow Asian girl, and I became immediate friends. We had so much in common. I thought I had found my long lost twin. And what luck! She was in almost all my other classes! I felt much better after making a new friend. Later that day during lunch, she introduced me to all of her friends. That day, I felt as though I had just been found after wandering all alone for years. Many of them were like me and, like my Asian friend, in many of my classes.

I became closer and closer to them and eventually, we all were a close knit bunch. By this time, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was out. Of course, like most groups of friends, we all discussed our favorite books. When my new friends heard that I hadn’t read past the first book, they looked at me in shock. I was confused. Was there something about this scarred boy that I missed? Finally, after many months of persuading from my friends, I asked my mother to buy me the second book. At first, she just stared at me, looking very surprised. “I thought you didn’t like Harry Potter,â€￾ she said, eyeing me suspiciously. “Well, if I don’t read Harry Potter, my friends are going to keep pestering me and I’m going to go insane.â€￾ That was a good enough reason for her, so she went out and bought Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Right when my mother came home with the book, I went to my room, locked the door, and read while trying to figure out if there was more to this Harry kid than what I knew.

After spending about two hours reading, I came downstairs, walked up to my mother and demanded that she go out and buy the next book because I had finished the last one. I had fallen in love with Harry’s wondrous world. My mother bought book after book, wondering where I had gotten this sudden fascination with this Harry Potter I had hated only days before. Finally, it came to an end. After finishing Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, I had to wait torturously for the fifth book. Days crawled by so slowly, I thought time would have stopped. But finally, it came. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was here. By now, Harry Potter had become a major obsession. Even after the fifth book, I wanted more. I wanted to go right up to J. K. Rowling’s house and demand that she write the next book quickly and get on with it. But I couldn’t so my friends and I sat in agony.

Now, after reading the sixth book, I don’t want the end to come. Sure I want to see what happens to the people I’ve grown to love and hate, but the end to the books means the end for the characters. No more adventures, no more of the magical world. I didn’t think that when I accepted that book from Shane’s mother’s hands it would do anything to me. But, now, I realize that if she hadn’t given me that book, I would have never discovered the joys of Harry Potter as I know of them today.

Signed: Risalyn Doyle (Gryffindor, an688, USA)

[Kayshan Lupin]

I got started thanks to my son, who was a baby at the time (about 4 years ago). I was helping his daycare at a Bingo fundraiser as the caller. It was to help them buy the kids Christmas presents and toys for the daycare. My voice carries very well.
Anyway, I called numbers for about 2 hours and had lots of fun.

Well, I had to go to another meeting then and before I could get off the stage, the owners gave me a present. It was the first four Harry Potter books - in hardback! That was the first I had heard of Harry Potter. As I'm an avid reader, especially of fantasy, I went home that Friday night and proceeded to read all four books that weekend. And that's all I did; I didn't speak to my husband or son or answer the phone or get on the computer. I just read.

Luckily, my husband knows how I am about books. He joked that it could have been the first divorce over Harry Potter!

So now I'm hooked. I've got books 5 and 6 in hardback (once you start a series in hardback, you have to finish it in hardback!) and can hardly stand the wait for book 7!

[Lynn Mander]

My friends and I ate lunch in the photography room in high school, since we were friends with the teacher. Three or four of them would spend ages talking about Harry Potter and how great it was. They told me I'd love it, but I thought... it's a kids' book, why would I want to read that?

Then I found out that my aunt, who's a doctor, loves the books. And I thought, "Hmm. Well, maybe it's not such a kids' book." So eventually I went out and got the first book. I spent the first chapter wondering what the big deal was, and then was hooked by the second chapter! I couldn't put the book down; I was completely drawn into the Potterverse.

I bought the second and third books, and fortunately had only a very short wait for the fourth one. The wait for the fifth drove me mad, as did the wait for the sixth. I have all six books, the six movies, and the two companion books. That isn't enough, apparently, so I came here, and I read and write fanfiction to tide me over. I'm also planning a Harry Potter party for my friends around the time the fourth movie comes out. (I can't wait!) And I really don't know how I'll survive when the series is over. I'm ridiculously obsessed, and I love every minute of it! /smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />

Lynn Mander (Hufflepuff, ly600, Canada)

[Autumn Lyell]

I have one of my friends to thank for turning me into an HP fanatic. /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> When the first movie came to the United States, I had no idea why everyone was making such a big fuss about it- it was just a stupid kid's book after all. I had just started my freshman year at college, and I had taken a new friend of mine out to see a movie. He called me a few days later, telling me that he had already bought tickets for us to see Harry Potter. Of course, I could not say no since he already had the tickets, so I went to the theater with him kicking and screaming. /unsure.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":unsure:" border="0" alt="unsure.gif" />

Well, as it turned out, I loved the movie so much that I saw it three times in the theater. After that, I decided to read the books. I am now a bigger fan of HP than my friend is- I managed to re-read all 5 books in the week and a half preceding HBP, and I finished the sixth book in 11 hours. I now have a whole wall dedicated to my HP memoribilia. And my friend reminds me everyday that it was because of him /wink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=";)" border="0" alt="wink.gif" />

Autumn Lyell (Gryffindor, au618, United States)

[Jhae Castro]

How did you get into Harry Potter? What made you read the books in the first place?


How did I get into Harry Potter? Well it is not by stumbling upon the Diagon Alley and not even by Daily Prophet. I get into the world of magic with the help of a Muggle! It was one sunny day when I was in my sophomore year in high school, my classmates were chatting happily about this so-called Harry Potter Book. While scribbling lectures from teachers, I can see them sneak and take a peak into this world I've never been heard of. They glance at the enchanting pages of the book ignoring the teacher's lecture as if they were all bewitched. They secretly murmur things I have never heard like Muggles, Diagon Alley or the Snitch. I was so curious about it! I want to find out what were they talking about and what was this hidden charm of that book entitled Harry Potter that made them hooked and excited. So finally, without even taking Felix Felicis, I felt so lucky because I found the book in our school library. It was tattered and it seems that its pages will fall from the cover. The librarian was hesitant to lend me the book because according to her, the book needs care and well -- repair! After pleading, finally she decided to hand me the book entitled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone that will change my life forever...

What made me read the thick and boring-looking book? As we all say, "Don't judge the book by it's cover!" and well don't judge it too by it's thickness. After reading the first book, I was bewitched by J. K. Rowling instantly! I fell in love with the characters especially to the trio who provided me constant excitement and enjoyment until the last page of the book(and the series). I immediately wished to recieve a letter from Hogwarts and take the Hogwarts Express. So, I read the book because of it's surprising twist and turns to it's plot and it's magical feeling that you feel as you read it. As if J.K. Rowling casted a bewictching spell in the said series. Importantly, what made me read the book is because the book lets me travel beyond our unfriendly world and helps me leave my problems. The book teaches me values about family, friends and school. It let me unvail the secrets of the magical world.

This Harry Potter series is not an ordinary book that tells us about a hero and the villain. It tells us the power of good against evil. This is the book that we can consider our friend, family or a relative. Harry Potter is within me, part of myself, part of me that makes me think that I can Apparate, I can use the Petrificus Totalus spell and that I can fly using our old broom. In short, the book makes me feel that I can do impossible things by believing that I have the power. Yes, I don't have a wand or a potion to drink but I have this power that is rooted in my heart and I will use it and Harry Potter taught me how to do it!


Jhae Castro ( Gryffindor, jh601, Philippines(Pilipinas) )

[Emmeline Brisk]

Thanks to my little brother, I became a Harry Potter fan.
I was probably a sophomore in high school, and he was in middle school. One day he brought home Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I always made fun of the books he read, and this one, I thought, was no different.
Harry Potter. That's so stupid. I thought, but I picked up the book anyway.
I opened up the book to the first chapter and started reading but I had to find out what happened next... so I kept reading and reading...
and didn't stop! /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" />
Now I can't wait until 7th one!

[Silvere Twindle]

I got into Harry Potter sometime during my seventh grade year. My teacher, which was not my favorite by a long shot, decided to read the first three Harry Potter books to our class. At first I thought they were boring and long drawn out.

It was when I had to reread them for myself for a class project that I grew to love them. Since then I have bought all of the Harry Potter books, own all of the movies on DVD and VHS, own a lot of their Hallmark ornaments, and have bought little odds and ends I have seen here or there.





Silvere Twindle ( Slytherin, si630, USA )

[Ceri McHawk]

For being honest, Harry Potter got into my life the other way round (taking as a starting point for example The Lord Of The Rings)
What do I mean with this? Simple! I first saw the movie and then dived into Harry Potter’s books.
I saw the movie in November 2001 when it was just released here in my country. I loved it really much, but it stayed there, because at that time my head was in the upcoming movie of December: The Fellowship of the Ring /smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />

After saw that movie I came out from the cinema delighted with P. Jackson’s film but feeling that there were so many things missed in the movie that I definitely would not change it from the magic of reading the book.
Once at home, I was talking about that with a friend who said: “hey! May the same is with Harry Potterâ€￾. And she woke up in me the intrigue of what if she is right? What if in the book there are things that really had been missed and are crucial also as I felt with Tolkien’s?

Went to bed with all in my mind and the next day I went to a bookstore and bought my copy of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stoneâ€￾ /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" />
How the story continued? Well is mostly known: I ended the first book, got the second, then the third, the fourth, the fifth and now I’m waiting for be able to get my copy of the last one (for now /wink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=";)" border="0" alt="wink.gif" /> )

So, as you all may read, tough Harry Potter came into my life by a movie I loved, the guilty of making him part of my personal library collection and a fan of his books is: The Lord of the Rings…
Does it sound strange? Not to me! /happy.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="^_^" border="0" alt="happy.gif" />

[Louis Brockett]

The way i got into Harry Potter isn't the most exciting way. I remember in 3rd grade when I was sitting in front of Sara, she was reading a book called harry potter (i really didnt think it looked interesting, like when everyone said "hey do you like Harry Potter?" I would always say that I hated it even though I had never read it) so i asked her what it was about, since everyone else was reading it I thought at least I should know what it was about. She told me it was about wizards and witches and a school called hogwarts (which regretfully i made fun of her for having a book with a school called hogwarts).
After about three months, and everyone was raving about the third book I thought that maybe i should try reading it. For my birthday I asked my parents for the harry potter books. They got me the first three books, and once I read the first book I was hooked, I mean the first part of the book did'nt hook me and I was just about to put it down until hagrid came to the door (in the book) and told Harry he was a wizard. after that I have all the books so far and I was so excited for the sixth book that I read it in five hours.
The moral of the story is that you should'nt judge a book by its cover. Also I'm one of Sara's best friends because she forgave me for being mean.
And thats how I got hooked.

[Bridget Chlum]

the first time i ever expeirenced harry potter was when i was about 9 ( i am now 13) we had just bought my brother a dvd played to use at college and Harry Potter #1 dvd came with it free. so i decided to watch it one day because i was bored. then the minute it began practicly i became obbsessed. after that i begged my mom to buy the books and she said no so i walked myself over to the walmart by my house and bought #1&2 because thats all i could afford at the time. then once my mom relized how happy harry potter made me she bought the rest of the books that were out then. my family still makes fun of me for rereading the books over and over but they dont understand how good harry potter is because they never read the books. one of my sisters saw all the movies with me and she likes them but she doesnt like to read so she never read the books. i watch the movies constanly and its a little weird but i am already rereading book #6 even though it just came out a few months ago and i didnt get it till 2 weeks after it came out.

[Sana Tauseef]

I have been a Harry Potter fan for as long as i can remember , but i think what made me really read the books was the first movie. i had always been a reader i spent hours in the library reading and reading i also tried to watch each and every movie that went with the books. Even though the movies had been AWESOME i stilll liked the books better i can picture the scenes better when i read every little detail. So when i first saw the Harry Potter movie #1 i thought the book had to be even more better ( i think i was about 7 or 8 at the time) and from then on i was officialy a jk rollings biggest fan.
Those books became my ALL TIME faverote books i spent hours on the computer looking up information about jk rolling, the characters and the movies. I marked my Calender when the another book was about to be published or when a movie was about to come out mi mum kept saying i was obbsessed but i couldnt help myself. i got all the movies and books and iv read each of them about 15 times (well not the HBP but i read that one 3 times already!) and now iv become daniel, emma and ruperts biggist fans also, the three most best people to play Harry Ron and hermione!
THATS MY STORY

Sana Tauseef (Ravenclaw, sa695, Canada)

[Andrew Mooney]

How did I get into Harry Potter?


Well I first heard of it from my darling sister (yeah right) who was well into it.My parents tried and my sister tried to get me into reading it but i just wouldn't.the day came when they had annoyed me so much that i sat down and read the first chapter and...well i...didn't really like it!can you believed it?!but i mainly didn't like it because i thought that it wasn't good even though i had never really tried reading it.but then a month or so later i sat down yet again and started reading again and so i started from the begining and whoa it blew my mind!when i finished it a week later i so enjoyed the Philosephers Stone that i got the other books and read them all.i had read them all four times each before The Flight Of The Phoenix came out.i have now read all of the first five five times each and i have just finished reading the Half-Blood Prince for the third time.thats my story of how i got into Harry Potter!!!!!! /biggrin.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":D" border="0" alt="biggrin.gif" /> /blink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":blink:" border="0" alt="blink.gif" /> /ph34r.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":ph34r:" border="0" alt="ph34r.gif" />

[Winnifred Seas]

I had won a prize from girls inc. and there wasn't much I saw the book ( year one) so I grabed it. It sat in my room for a while. One day when I was cleening my room I found the book on the floor and started to read it. ( getting out of cleening my room /laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":lol:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" /> .)I didn't even read the first chapter. Then 4 or 5 monthes later I started to read it again. this time I read the whole thing. Then I keep haveing my parents buy me more HP books. I had seen the movies but never paid much attion to them. now i pay attion to them!

Winnifred Seas, Gryffindor, wi610, USA