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20 Years of Harry Potter: Goodreads Members on the Magic of J.K. Rowling's Books
We were all Muggles once. Before Harry, before Hogwarts, before Quidditch and Sorting Hats, our lives were all a little less magical. That changed on June 26, 1997, when J.K. Rowling published her first novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (published a year later in the United States as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone).
Two decades into the boy wizard's reign, Rowling's books have spawned blockbuster movies, theme parks, stage productions, and a powerful legacy that rivals those of far older classics.
"Will kids (and adults, as well) still be wild about Harry a hundred years from now, or two hundred?" Stephen King wrote in his review of the fifth book in the series. "My best guess is that he will indeed stand time's test, and wind up on a shelf where only the best are kept; I think Harry will take his place with Alice, Huck, Frodo, and Dorothy, and this is one series not just for the decade, but for the ages."
To mark the 20th anniversary of Philosopher's Stone's publication, we asked our followers on Facebook and Twitter to tell us how the series has impacted their life. Check out some of our favorite stories below and then share yours in the comments!
1. "It brought my mother, myself, and my children closer. Three generations fighting over who would get to read the next book first." -Nauina
2. "It ignited my love of reading. I essentially grew up with Harry. I will be forever grateful for its influence on my life. Always." -Andrea
4. "When I was in middle school, I was bullied. In my mind, I went to Hogwarts every single day to escape my own torment. Thank you, J.K. Rowling! Thank you Harry, Ron, and Hermione." -Taryn
5. "I met my best friend through reading Harry Potter, and she's now my bridesmaid. Our friendship will be 18 years old." -Erin
6. "I'm an old lady with an old kid and didn't read my first Harry Potter book until last September. Prior to that I used to wonder what there was in the way of current entertainment that could compare with what I had—shows like Howdy Doody and Westerns. Now I know that with Harry, this generation got something far better. It's some serious magic." -Judy
7. "My Dad still calls me Hermoine! It's nice to share the love of the books with my family." -Sally
8. "I had turned away from reading. J.K. Rowling brought me back…and she brought me back stronger and better than I ever thought possible. Thank you, J.K. Rowling. Thank you." -Natalie
9. "When my oldest was about ten, he asked if there would still be Harry Potter books when he grew up. I said, 'Of course, books are forever. Why?' His answer: 'I just wanted to make sure I can read them to my kids someday.' -Stephanie
10. "I want to be a writer because of Harry Potter! Because when I read those books, I experienced a feeling of incomparable love and warmth." -Gashugi
11. "It kickstarted my obsession with fantasy and science fiction—and it helped me overcome my depression." -Nitasha
12. "OMG! Where do I begin? A coworker introduced me to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I read the entire book in one day and was hooked from that moment on. I've gone to all of the midnight book and movie releases. I reread the series so many times I've lost count. No words could adequately explain my love for these books." -Shanda
13. "It's been the best friend that's never abandoned me!" -Phoenix
14. "It gave me a happy and safe space I can always turn to no matter what." -Jelke
15. "I always pick up Harry Potter books when I need to be reminded that hope perseveres even in the darkest times. Thank you for the magic, J.K. Rowling!" -Desiree
17. "I have dyslexia and ADHD. In middle school, I was reading at a second grade level. I had this friend who was a big reader, and she would tell me about the world inside those books. I was so mesmerized by it. But I got tired of being told about it and wanted to see it for myself. So I went and got Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I read and reread that book so many times until the words started to make sense. I started trying to read everything. In the seventh grade, I went from a second grade reading level to an eighth grade level in one semester. It was all because of my friend…and because of Harry Potter. I'm such a huge reader now. I don't know who I'd be if I'd never found those books. A me who can't read—it's a scary thought. I owe it all to that series. It sounds dumb but it really was like finding a home." -Rebecca
18. "I found my fandom and my people! And we're cool now. When I was younger, I would've been ridiculed for being so bookish and nerdy." -Bri
19. "I was 11 when I read them for the first time. It seems so long ago. Those stories kept me afloat when everyone else in my life was trying to drown me. I just wish I could read them for the first time all over again." -Shivani
20. "Hogwarts is my home, and I'm still waiting for my letter." -Dounia
How has Harry Potter affected your life? Share your story with us in the comments!
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Nina LaCour's Ultimate Pride Month Reading List
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June's 8 Hottest New Memoirs
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swiftpuppy13
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Jun 26, 2017 03:56PM
I grew up reading Harry Potter and I love it SO MUCH!!
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This series is so special to me. I started reading it when I was 12 and when I started to struggle with my mental health. Reading about Harry and Hogwarts took me away from my world and gave me the hope and strength that I needed to get through those challenging times. My fondest memories as a teen are from staying up all night to read after the midnight book releases. <3
When the books first came out, I fell in love with Harry Potter although my kids didn't. Even still, one Christmas was a Harry Potter Christmas for me. My kids got together and gave me all of the books in hardbound and in a little trunk, and my brother-in-law gave me another little trunk with the first six movies (the seventh one hadn't came out yet) which included a set of bookmarks that were metal and in a variety of shapes such as a broom and the golden snitch. It was a pretty awesome Christmas!
You can measure my childhood on Harry Potter. My mom read my brother and I the first two books because we were not old enough to read yet. Book 5 was our first midnight release at my best friend's slumber party. Book 7 came out on a Saturday when I was working as a counselor at summer camp. (Monday morning the staff and campers were split between those who had finished and could only say "oh my god" and those who kept yelling "don't tell me yet!) By the time the last movie came out my friends and I bought our own tickets and drove our own cars to the midnight release.
I was born in 1992, I learned to read in 1999, with Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal. From that moment, being a "reader" became one of the characteristics that defined me, until now, that I work teaching how to love books. It's often difficult, but Harry Potter is always a starting point for students who ask what to read.
Enzo wrote: "Living in the US meant that it took a year before the first book got published here. But that didn't mean we didn't hear the praises and the ovations being hurled at @JKRowling It was fun picking ..."
I'd be awesome to read HP books as if it were the first time <3
I was a bit late in reading the series, i got offered the Philosopher's Stone as a prize in a reading competition in year 3 of school but i didn't want it (what a fool). I saw the chamber of secrets the movie with my school and loved it. I started reading the series a year or 2 later and was instantly obsessed. When Deathly Hallows was released i finished it over the weekend and got to school on Monday, only one of my friends had finished it and we got a bit teary mainly because of the outcome of a certain mischievous character and the fact that the series was over. Never has a series affected me so much that i am still hugely in love with everything about the magical world all these years later.
I first saw Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone at the dive-in theater when it came out in 2001. I was born in 1996. And I remember watching Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets there as well. I don't remember watching the rest of the movies, but I did get the final movie on DVD. I started reading the first two books when I was in the eighth grade and got the rest as a graduation present, which I read into I was a freshman in high school. That was the first time I ever read the series.
I have not yet finished the series just 3 more until I'm done but I still love this series and I'm planning on finishing the series this year. Since I was born around the time when the first 3 movies were made I grew up watching the movies. Although I didn't exactly love It at that time I just remember vividly watching goblet of fire and chamber of secrets.I started reading the books when I was either 11 or 12 but I only read the philosopher's stone, I didn't continue reading the rest of the series until I reached high school because my old school library wasn't fully equipped with the whole series but my high school was so this year I read the 2nd,3rd and 4th book and I'm definitely reading more.
I think I was in high school when I started reading Harry Potter, I wish it was around sooner. I'm now 32, still love the books...and am still waiting for my letter.
My best friend and I are fans, different houses (she's Slytherin and I'm Hufflepuff) and for her birthday last year, I made her her own Hogwarts letter and booklist for the year (fancy paper and all), a gift only a HP fan would love.
I was 4 years old when the first book came out and my parents started reading chapters of Harry Potter to me as bedtime stories. And I was 18 years old, just about to start college, when the last movie came out. I devoured the series twice through myself between those times. Basically, the Harry Potter series book-ended my childhood (no pun intended). I will always have a special weakness and place in my heart for Harry Potter and for J.K. Rowling because they've kept a piece of my childhood alive inside me.
Harry Potter got me through the tough times of middle school and always got me out of my reading slumps. Forever greatful for this magical series.
I didn't start reading Harry Potter until I was in 8th Grade (all my friends had been reading the series since it came out), after I had watched the end of Prisoner of Azkaban on ABC Family and my mom said I couldn't watch the rest of the movies until I read the books. Our middle school was split into two teams for each grade, maroon and white, the school's colors. In 8th Grade, my friends were all on the opposite team from me, which meant I had no friends to talk to until I saw them at lunch or during band rehearsal twice a week. Harry, Ron, and Hermione became my best friends that year, getting me through the majority of the school year. I was just as excited as all of my friends when Deathly Hallows was published and when the rest of the movies came out. This is definitely a series that I will have on the shelf and that I will introduce to my future children.
Harry, and his world will always be near and dear to my heart. Rowling's creation is one of the cornerstones that supports my love for the fantasy genre. I look forward to one day reading The Philosopher's Stone to my kids, just like my mother did with me.
Living in India when the first book was launched in 1997 I never heard of it. Most of because there was no internet here or for that matter too many bookstores where I visited. I also wasn't the reader I am now. I had spied a harry potter book at my dad's friends house but we only watched the movies with fascination till the Goblet of Fire. And then came the year 2005 when I started turning into the reader I am now and initially got the books GOF onwards because they were so costly and I thought that the smaller books would have been covered in the movies more. I Pre-ordered Deathly Hallows and got to the store promptly at 12 PM LOL because I got out of office at 11 AM. I love Harry Potter this is the first series which left me sleep deprived as I would lose myself in the magic and would only sleep for 2-3 hours. This was the book and the Movies which made my time magical. I have all the books now. I am loving the illustrated versions now and awaiting the 3rd book now.Potterhead always
I think by the time I started reading Harry Potter I was in the seventh grade by that time only the first three books were out from what I can remember. I read the first book out of pure curiosity and loved it and that's when I fell into the world of Harry Potter. It is by far my favorite series and has given me a love of reading. I own all seven books and I'm happy to know that whenever I feel the need to visit the Wizarding World I can just walk over to my bookshelf and pick up the Sorcer's Stone. Sadly it may be over but it will always remain with us. Thank you J.K. Rowling for bringing such a wonderful worlds to life.
I was in college when I discovered Harry Potter. I was observing a class for my Education class and the teacher read "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" to the class. I was so interested in it, I went and asked what it was called. I got a copy of the book that week and read it. I read all of them and seen all the movies. I always wanted to go to Hogwarts.
Harry Potter will forever be apart of me, always.
My friends think I'm mad for reading the series 7 times, but hey 7 is the magic number!! I got my mum and sister hooked on them and will always love them cos they are as timeless as magic itself!! Thank J. K.
Its like F.R.I.E.N.D.S series for me with book and with lots of magic :) I must say my high school life was all about HP.
The first Harry Potter book I read was Prisoner of Azkaban. I was 9, saw it on a friends desk and started reading. I was immediately sucked into the world of magic. For the next few years the only words in my vocabulary were magic, hogwarts, wizards, muggles and all that HP lingo. Deathly Hallows came out when I was 12. Everyone knew me as the crazy Harry Potter guy, I'd always have an HP book in my hand since I read the books in class, on the school bus, everywhere! I still read the series once every year. Harry Potter was my childhood and I'm sure it has defined my character. Harry, Hermione and Ron will always be a part of me.
I started reading Harry Potter in the spring 2000 at the age of 15.It would have been uncool to read childrens books at that age, so I read the books in English to improve it (brilliant excuse, not only reading childrens books, but also a nerd ;-))
I have come a long way in the last 17 years.
The Harry Potter books really started my love of reading in English and by now almost all my books are in English.
My English improved, a lot.... I remenbered yesterday how hard it was to understand Hagrid for a not native, not so fluent 15-year-old me....and now it is no problem at all.....
I had some brilliant days discussing the books with friends...
And my now husband (and partner for nearly ten years) contacted me for the first time ten years ago, because we were the first ones to have read HP7 in an fanclub forum we both were in and he desperately needed someone to talk :-)
There are so many happy memories...
and going to London last year, with my husband and our best friend, to see The Cursed Child, was just another highlight.
My life would miss some very important parts without Haryy Potter.
I owe a big thanks to Harry Potter & friends (Ms. Rowling as well) for shaping my childhood and and teen years. I was so enthralled by those books that I never considered watching the films seriously, anyways I did watch, haha. Now I am almost 25 and still feel the magic around me which I would have never discovered if I did not read the HP series. Long live Harry & co.
When I was 7 we moved to a different county, I didn't have any friends at my school (of course, I didn't speak English...), and, this might sound silly, but these books became my friends... My life wouldn't be the same if I wasn't introduced to this magical world
At this point, members of my family know HP book series almost by heart and I still read every interesting tidbit on Pottermore website. We were all grownups when introduced to this series, but that world is part of our lives now and we use parts of the text as proverbs.
Harry Potter series sucked me into a beautiful world that reality and fiction became one and the same. I am almost the same age as the actors and grew up with the series. My friends and I used to name our fellow classmates and teachers with HP characters and I found my own Hogwarts (though less magical) in my school. The series taught me that Love and Friendship is all that matters.Thank You Jk Rowling for the letting me find hope when none was available.
I cannot envision a childhood without Harry Potter. You made my life, not my day. Thank you Jk Rowling, Thank you a trillion butterbeers!
I'm from the generation that grew up with Harry Potter. I remember mom threatening me to take away these books, cause I would read them over and over again, forgetting about whole world......so then I would read Harry under blanket at night XD
I have seen more of the movies than I have read the books. All the books are on my TBR list, though. I read Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone years ago and loved it. Saw Fantastic Animals and Where to Find Them last year. I really regret not having bought a Harry Potter book boxset years ago. I prefer ebooks but may still buy the paperback set as a collector's item. Really need to catch up on the Harry Potter books in whatever format it is. JK Rowling has a great writing style! 20 years already? Time flies! Harry Potter books still have the same appeal and I like the movies too.
I fell in love with books when i took up the first harry potter book.Harry has taught me sooo much...I'll never forget them through out my life....
but the most i learned from in this amazing life changing series is Severus Snape....
Aaaahhhh....what can I say...
There is so much to say about him that this comment box won't be enough to convey what i learned from him...
but i think this quote of dumbledore best describes him & his role in harry's life...
"Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light." -Albus Dumbledore
he was the guiding light in harry's and my life and i am forever grateful to J.K.Rowling for writing such an amazing character... THANK YOU...(seems a lot small word but I'm no JKR to mesmerize any one with my writing....I just write what I feel...) -Shree
These are the only books that I have read all the book twice. Still remember when the 5th part of the edition released I had exams going on. Read the book first then went into study for exams. Those days were really wonderful
arz shevayad onsori chob eles di mitavanadkheyli karkonad an ham der khanooesharhaasht khat khat mikhani va ba onsore kesh va fahm bina bood va an hame onsor molzem nemimanad
When I was 9 and reached 3. grade I've already read the first 3 or 4 books and my teacher wrote in my annual report "Thanks to Harry Potter Sandra evolved into a bookworm!". I can't image my childhood without this world and its magic. Thank you J.K. Rowling!
I was so blessed to find Harry in my childhood. Six years old and reading Sorceror's Stone was not only a milestone, but the beginning of a love for books, reading, and fantastical worlds. Especially a world that I would still be very much immersed in today. I can't wait to read these to my future children. Thank you so so so much, J.K. Rowling, Harry, and the gang. <3
When I was a child I didn't read at all. So I first got introduced to Harry Potter through the first movie. My dad bought the videocassette when I was 6 or 7 and he told me about it, so we watched it together.
The same happened to the next 4 movies. When Harry Potter and the Half blood prince came out, I went to the cinema with my dad and only a few weeks later I found out that my mother had a copy of the book. So I started reading it when I was 10 or 11. I needed half a year to finish it! (It was the first long book I read)
When the last to movies came out, I already knew what would happen and still I was extremely excited!
The order I read the books for the first time was: 6,7,4,5,1,2,3 (crazy, I know). With every book I fell more and more in love with Harry Potter. This love grew even more when I joined pottermore with 13. I found amazing friends through Harry Potter, when I was 13-16 I only had online friends who were great fans, too. They helped me so much and were there when no one else was. Sadly, I lost contact :(
But now, as I'm 18, I've found 2 best friends that love Harry Potter as well and we can fangirl together. I even visited the Warner Bros. Studio Tour in London with one of them!
So, I can proudly say that Harry Potter shaped my life. Without it, I wouldn't be the same as I am now. And I'm so thankful that Jo created this world, that has such a big impact on so many people.
I'm proud to be a potterhead!
The same happened to the next 4 movies. When Harry Potter and the Half blood prince came out, I went to the cinema with my dad and only a few weeks later I found out that my mother had a copy of the book. So I started reading it when I was 10 or 11. I needed half a year to finish it! (It was the first long book I read)
When the last to movies came out, I already knew what would happen and still I was extremely excited!
The order I read the books for the first time was: 6,7,4,5,1,2,3 (crazy, I know). With every book I fell more and more in love with Harry Potter. This love grew even more when I joined pottermore with 13. I found amazing friends through Harry Potter, when I was 13-16 I only had online friends who were great fans, too. They helped me so much and were there when no one else was. Sadly, I lost contact :(
But now, as I'm 18, I've found 2 best friends that love Harry Potter as well and we can fangirl together. I even visited the Warner Bros. Studio Tour in London with one of them!
So, I can proudly say that Harry Potter shaped my life. Without it, I wouldn't be the same as I am now. And I'm so thankful that Jo created this world, that has such a big impact on so many people.
I'm proud to be a potterhead!
The series is both beneficial to both adults and children and it has basically brought togetherness between mothers and children because they talked about who is who's favourite, what they think will happen in the next series and stuff. As for me it has always been a topic between me and my sisters and we use those magical words between us " veraverto, wingadiam laviousa, ridiculous and many more", we also try to follow new updates on it and everyone will try as much to be the first one to talk about a new movie.
I will wait for a Hogwarts letter until my death bed
I am 32 years old, and I just read them for the first time this year! I spent 2 weeks in February just reading feverishly through each book, stopping between books to watch the corresponding movie! This was all in preparation to take my cousin to the Wizarding World in Orlando (so I would actually know what was going on). It was a fantastic experience, and the books hold a special place in my heart. I can only imagine what it must have been like to grow up with these characters.
I remember my teacher first reading me Harry Potter when I was still in primary school and whilst my life was somewhat miserable at this stage I found comfort in the magical world of HP, I found friendship, thrill seeking adventures, I found dreams and nightmares alike.I have grown with the wizarding world from a young girl to a young adult and I have so many fond, magical memories all created from these books, the spark that lit my fire of love for fantasy.
I've always wanted to re-read the series for a long time now, I originally read the first book when I was 8. I stopped reading after people said I was a bit of a nerd to keep reading it. So after The Chamber Of Secrets came out I only read half-way through and stopped. Fast forward many years and now I want to get back to it, my question is I know some of the plot already (i.e I know someone called Cedric dies and Dumbledore dies.) Should I start again or has too much been given away?
The Harry Potter series brought me and my best friend together and also made me and my siblings closer since we don't have any thing in common so thank you J.K Rowling
When I was in fifth grade, I had a teacher who would assign books to me for required reading. One day, I picked a book for myself and that was Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Since then, I loved reading and never stopped. I owed it all to my teacher and to Harry (and Inkheart, but that's another story).
I started reading Harry Potter when I was six, and I loved it instantly. J.K. Rowling's stories transported me to another world that I love. My parents have all the books except The Prisoner of Azkaban.
Melissa wrote: "The HP series was the first real fantasy series I read all the way through. Magic Treehouse, Series of Unfortunate Events, even contemporary YA series like Hunger Games - those are fine books, but ..."And as Moody said, CONSTANT VIGILANCE!
This got me through highschool! I have read each book atleast 5 times, and it's my go to place whenever things are messy.
I am convinced the whole story is true, and J.K.R wrote a biography for Harry.
Still waiting for my hogwarts letter. Freaking 7 years LATE!
I am convinced the whole story is true, and J.K.R wrote a biography for Harry.
Still waiting for my hogwarts letter. Freaking 7 years LATE!
I enjoyed the series, it was fun reading. I wasn't enamored of some of the parts of the books but to avoid starting a flame war I'll keep those to myself. I'll never play Quidditch or buy memorabilia (maybe a wand, I like wood) but I did read the entire series and eagerly awaited each new book.Edit - I did want to point out that unlike many of the commenters I didn't grow up with Harry Potter. I was well into my 30's when they started coming out. They weren't my first or likely thousandth book. I've been reading probably since I was six or so. my first foray into magic and fantasy was in 5th grade when my teacher knowing I was an avid reader gave me his copy of The Hobbit.
I have never read a Harry Potter book! I have however listened to every Harry Potter book on audio! The gentlemen that read the books brought the Harry Potter world alive for me. I watch the movies every time they run on television and I see something that I didn't see before. I especially love the fact that each movie is exactly as I imagined it would be when I read the books! The Harry Potter books will continue to be one of my all time favorites and I am 57 years old!! The lessons learned continue to help me to this day. My niece introduced me to this fantasy world when she was in first grade and I will be forever grateful to her and J.K. Rowling. I can't wait to see the Cursed Child when it comes to the U.S. next year.
I found about Harry Potter when I saw the poster for the first movie. I remember I was 10 years old at the time. After I saw the movie I asked my mom if she could buy me the book. I remember her looking at me funny because I had never asked for a book. But she ended buying Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets for me. After that the rest is history. I learned to love reading because of JK Rowling and because of Harry. Getting immersed in this magical world was and still is the best feeling in the world. Harry Potter has been with me throughout the good and the not so good times in my life. I have lost count of the many times I have read the books and will be always grateful to JK Rowling for giving me a childhood friend. I don't know who I would be without Harry Potter and to this day I still wish that I would have gotten my Hogwarts letter on my 11th birthday.
I grew up with Gandalf, Bilbo and Frodo as well as Wardrobes and Aslan! All of the Heroes and magical creatures of Middle Earth and Narnia!I found Mr. Potter sitting on a table in the isle of Borders labeled "Young Adult" and since, much like Peter Pan, I never grew up when it came to adventure, I started to browse the pages and I was hooked being bedded under the stairs!
A new generation has been inspired to open their imaginations through the magic of reading! An older generation has returned to their youth by that same magic!
