I’ve loved Harry Potter since I was a little girl. It all started on a summer day, the summer before second grade. I was sitting at my dining room table when my mom approached me and handed me an old, slightly tattered book titled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone across the front. “I want you to read this,” she said. “I read it as a little girl, and I think you’ll like it.” When she left, I picked up the mysterious book, observed the cover with a curious mind, and decided to open to page one.
During elementary school, especially grades kindergarten through fourth grade, I had always loved and interested in reading. People had referred to me as “that reader girl” and other things along those lines. Almost every time I was at school or home, even running errands, you could see me with a big book clutched in my hand. But as I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, my world of novels expanded beyond what I could have dreamed. After finishing the first book in the Harry Potter series, I immediately wanted to read the next one. The novelty of it was thrilling, and part of the reason I loved it so much was due to one of the main characters, Hermione Granger. I looked up to her because she was brilliant and ambitious in school and knew what she wanted. I finished the Harry Potter series the summer before second grade, including the fifth book in the series, which had almost 900 pages. During that school year, I would use a program where I could take quizzes on books I’d read and earn points to receive prizes. I would go on to be in second place out of the entire elementary school, with my points second to the librarian’s son because of those Harry Potter books. I, a second grader, had outshone even fifth graders in their reading.
Many kids worldwide have fallen in love with the Harry Potter series like I did. Even some adults were enamored with it. And it was all because of J.K. Rowling, the author of the entire series. One day in 1990, she was taking a crowded train home back from Manchester to London, and suddenly, the idea popped into her head about an orphan wizard boy who ended up going to a wizarding school just discovering he was part of that world at the age of 11. She was extremely excited about this idea and turned it into a multi-million dollar franchise. This all happened from a small dream she created. Many movies, books, and television shows have already entertained the idea of the wizard and witch, but Rowling’s conception shines above all.
As the years went by, Rowling developed seven novels, each with unique, creative storylines and many favorable characters. The books were translated into eighty-five languages and spread around the globe. Fans also looked up to her and started sending letters to Rowling, admiring her work and the story she spread. Due to these events, the Harry Potter franchise grew exponentially. On April 7, 2016, Universal Studios, a theme park in Hollywood, California, opened the Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction. It’s a magical place for many infatuated with Harry Potter because it accurately represents the places and objects described in the books. The castle of Hogwarts is magnificent to look at and beautifully created. It took them two and a half years to make and cost $200 million.
