Today is the 21st anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts. If you do not know what I am talking about I part envy you and part pity you. Envy because you are yet to experience the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Pity because you are yet to experience the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
My foray into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter began on November 17, 2016 when I started reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone for book 44/52 (the reading prompt was “a top 100 fantasy novel”) of my 2016 reading challenge. Back then I would post the books from my reading challenge on Instagram and a friend of mine commented:
“Omg. I wish I was you. You have a wonderful journey ahead of you. Enjoy the (quidditch) ride.”
At the time I had no idea what she meant, but after concluding the series on December 11, 2017 (two days before my mum died, boohoo!) I completely agree with her. I wish someone at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (preferably Hermione because she is least likely to fuck a delicate procedure up) would erase that part of my memory so I can read the books anew.
My favourite books to read are the ones that remind me of why I fell in love with reading in the first place. There is no greater magic in the world than that of a good book and one of my favourite things in life is when I get lost in a captivating story. The Harry Potter series is one I will return to again and again because even thinking of how I felt reading the books fills me with so much glee. I hope one/both of my future twin girls are readers as I would love to experience the books through them as well.
So yes, I really did start reading the Harry Potter books in late 2016 which probably makes me the epitome of a late bloomer. I have no reason as to why I took so long other than I operate very weirdly at times. I used to really go on and on about how the books are daft and the movies are even dafter yet I had never given them a chance. “I will never ever waste my reading the books or watching the movies,” I would say rather vehemently when the topic came up … As I said, I operate very weirdly at times.
But I finally got around to reading them and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is one of my favourite books of all time. I could not put it down, yet I also read it as slowly as I possibly could as I wanted to savour every word of the final instalment. Everything about it was extremely enthralling, from page one up until the culmination of a seven book arc in the Battle of Hogwarts. There is a character that J.K. Rowling killed off in the battle and it still hurts my heart every time I think about it.
Just last month I watched the video for Lego House by Ed Sheeran (I am deeply ashamed as I type this) and was excited to learn that Rupert Grint is in it. I am not one to keep exciting news to myself so I asked my sister and a colleague of mine if they have watched the movies. I wanted to send them a link to the music video and it would be more relevant if they had watched the movies. Their response was something along the lines of “of all the stupid questions I have ever been asked in my life this is the stupidest.” Lol. In my defence though, I am yet to watch the movies so it was not obvious to me. But I plan to watch them once I feel I am starting to forget major plot points from the books. That way I can relive the nostalgic feeling I get whenever I think of the books as I experience the series via a different medium.
If you enjoy reading but have not read the Harry Potter series I INSIST you get on it. That is why I have taken care not to share any spoilers in this post as I do not want provide any deterrents. You will do many things you regret in life, but embarking on this journey is not one of them.
Lwile the Leo 