Update (6/11): Laura Mallory (an ordained minister???) submitted an op-ed to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, dated June 10. For those who don't want to register to read it, here's an excerpt:

"The mass media today knows all too well that "sorcery sells," and the market is none other than … ? You guessed it — our children.

"Just take a look at the flood of occult books, movies, television shows, video games, and there's no denying it. Many children and teens today, fascinated with Harry Potter, are seeking Harry's power. What exactly is Harry's power? Where does it come from? Is it just "harmless fantasy" power or perhaps something more? Let's take a closer look at the effects of Harry Potter on this generation.
…
"But what about casting spells? Is it just fantasy? … The Association of Teachers & Lecturers, a teachers union in Great Britain, says, "This goes far beyond a case of reading a Harry Potter story. This represents an extremely worrying trend among young people."

Continue reading Laura Mallory, Foiled Again!

WATCH OUT FOR SPOILERS BELOW! Read at your own risk.

Are you bored at work? Are you late-night surfing, looking for something interesting? Kill a few minutes answering these three questions:

1) How/when did you become a Harry Potter fan?

— I'm going to cheat a bit and link to a book review I wrote. An excerpt:

When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone premiered on ABC last year, I intended to watch an hour’s worth to see what the Harry Potter hype was all about. I ended up watching the entire movie, which I found completely charming. I hadn’t read any of the books at that point, but “the boy who lived” had captured my already-active imagination.

After that, I saw "Chamber of Secrets" and "Prisoner of Azkaban," and was totally taken with both. But the real magic didn't happen until I read the books. In early summer 2005, the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6) pre-release hype was driving me crazy.

Why is this so big? What am I missing?

Arriving at the conclusion that I had been missing something, I ordered Books 1-5, and started reading. I thought reading Books 1-3 would be tedious because I'd already seen the movies. Boy, was I wrong! In adapting the book to the screen, scenes had to be cut, condensed, combined — it was almost like discovering a new story.

Continue reading Three Questions

It's no surprise that the Harry Potter series has generated a reading frenzy among kids.

According to J.K. Rowling, a mother-fan told her that one night, she read the first two chapters of a Potter book to her dyslexic son, who found reading difficult. The next morning, said the mother, she walked into the room to find her son reading the book. She cried. JKR said she almost cried, too. The book was the first the boy had ever finished by himself.

(JKR also said she appreciates letters from boys a bit more because she knows how difficult it can be for them to write and to express themselves.)

I'm sure thousands (millions?) of parents around the world have similar stories to share. Kids who once disdained reading and avoided books flocked to the Harry Potter series. The Christian Science Monitor cites a survey called The Kids and Family Reading Report. According to the report, over half the 500 children and adults surveyed said they hadn't read "for fun" before the HP books arrived on the scene, and 65 percent of the kids said that reading the books improved their performances in school. Boys benefited the most. An excerpt:

Marcus credits the series for getting him interested in reading. He says his grandfather read him the first five books, but he wanted to read the sixth one himself. Since then, he loves to read medieval, fantasy, and science-fiction books, he says. He also now likes the many books he reads for school – even though the majority aren't his favorite genres, he says.

"I whip through 50 books a year," says Marcus matter-of-factly.

Though JKR said she didn't write the books for children, they're a hit with kids nevertheless. The books' themes are universal, and many appeal to children. What child surrounded by ordinariness hasn't dreamed of discovering that he's special?

Ah, but what about the pressure to read Potter? According to the report, 63 percent of boys and 44 percent of girls say they believe it's important to read the books because their friends read them. Hey, whatever gets children reading…