10-year Potter run comes to a close
By By Kim West
Today marks the 10-year anniversary of when the first Harry Potter book was published, and the final and seventh book will be released tonight at 12:01 a.m. in stores all over the world. The fifth Harry Potter movie was released only 10 days ago, and it has already grossed $140 million. The book series has sold over 325 million copies, and the first four films have grossed 3.5 billion at the box office.
British author J.K. Rowling had trouble finding a publisher for her first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (re-named Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the U.S.). Eight publishers turned down that manuscript, and I wonder what they were thinking when they rejected a literary lottery ticket that ended up hitting the jackpot.
I know the Harry Potter series has sparked controversy over everything from its literary merits to whether or not it encourages witchcraft. It has even drawn criticism from feminists for being too chauvinistic, which is ironic since Rowling was a single mother when she wrote the first book. It amazes me that some towns in this country have actually held book burnings for Harry Potter books, and there is even a mother in Georgia who is determined to have the series banned from her children's school library because she believes the books promote the Wicca religion.
For the record, Rowling is a Presbyterian churchgoer and has said in interviews that she believes in God. Whether she intended it or not, I have noticed many Christian themes in her books, and some Christian writers have even compared her to C.S. Lewis. I don't think Harry Potter books are in the same literary category as Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia series, but I believe Rowling's books will still be read by children hundreds of years from now because she understands the way kids think and feel, and she knows how to tell a story.
Harry Potter, the series' main character, experienced a difficult childhood and grew up without his parents, who were killed by the books' villian, Lord Voldemort, when he was a baby. In his dealings with Voldemort, Harry is constantly struggling between his temptation for revenge and his desire to do the right thing. I think the struggle between temptation and knowing what's right and wrong is something we can all relate to.
It's up to parents to decide what's appropriate for their children, but I agree with Rowling, who said, "You have a perfect right, of course, as every parent does, and I'm a parent, to decide what your child is exposed to. You do not have the right to decide what everyone else's children are exposed to."
