as far as i could remember, Harry Potter books began its hype during the late 90s or early 2000. at first, i really don't care what the hell is Harry Potter but i was already hearing things that it was a bad book, etc. i didn't even know that it's a young adult novel. i didn't gave a damn about it because, as a kid, i don't like to read books - i was all about Animes, Backstreet Boys, Spice Girls and Britney Spears. hahaha. it was only in 2001 when i found out what Harry Potter is.
that was the year the first movie adaptation was released. i was in first year high school and my friend invited me to watch it. i said 'yes' thinking that at least i won't have to read the whole thing. unfortunately, i failed one of my subjects and i got grounded. my mom didn't allowed me to watch it in the cinema so i just asked her for a compensation:p I ASKED HER IF I COULD BUY THE BOOK. after my mom talked to my teacher, we went to a bookstore and saw Harry Potter books all over. good thing i know what Harry Potter book that was being shown in the cinema during that time or else i would've bought the wrong book. i was unsure at first because the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone book that was on display is different from the book that my friend has have different cover and size - she has the usual Harry Potter but what i bought was smaller and is blue all over.
anyway, before i read it i was, thinking that i may not understand it - its my problem about reading long stuffs. i began to read it and i think i read the first chapter for about three times before i got it all together. haha. but after that, everything went great! i think i finished the book after a week - i didn't brought it to school with me, i just read it every night. after i finished the book, i borrowed the second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. i even attempted to type it in a typewriter so that i can have my own copy. why not buy? well, i'm hesitant to ask my mom to buy. but when she found out what i was trying to do, she bought it anyway, hahahaha.
then i bought the third book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and i could still remember reading under the covers and with a flashlight at night. hahahaha. i think i finished the book in less than a week. then i bought the fourth installment, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - it was my favorite Harry Potter book.
then at the same year, my mom bought the VCD copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as a birthday gift for me - that was actually the first time i watched the WHOLE movie [the first time was with a pirated VCD and it doesn't have the scene at the zoo]. yeah, i was such a loser! but it was okay, it's one of my important possession. but for the second movie up to the fifth, i watched it all in the big screen. i haven't watch the sixth yet but i'll make sure i would be able to.
i bought the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, in hard bound but i borrowed one first. but i have to return it fast so i wasn't able to finish yet. since it goes against my Harry Potter collection (all my Harry Potter books are in soft bound), i decided to sell it to my sister's friend after a year since that's the only Harry Potter book she doesn't have - and all of her Harry Potter books are in hard bound. i didn't sold it close to the amount that i bought it - i had a small amount of cash but she gave me a huge Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire tarpaulin and she lent me Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. haha. it was fair enough.
as for the seventh book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, i read it in a PDF file since i don't have the money to buy the book that time. then i just decided to buy it in package in the future. [my salary's just week away, i can do the waiting...it'll be the first thing i'll buy!].
Harry Potter made me love reading. but i must admit that i don't read anything that goes out in the market - i didn't read Lord of the Rings and never will i read Twilight! it defined what i would like in a book - from the genre to how it was printed. hahaha. it's the book which also got me into writing my own stories - but i don't write magic and stuffs, i write simple young adult fics. it broadened my imagination as well as my vocabulary. hahahaha. it really did a huge thing to me. and i'm sure my mom was also thankful for the series - she's been dying to make me read books when i was young. hahahaha.
and i think it's the book that changed a lot of things. it made a lot of children read and even though the series is already over, those children are going to the bookstore to find new books to read. it gave literature a whole new life. it encouraged writers to publish their works since they know that people out there have gained their own passion of reading. it's a classic and it will be forever be read by a lot of people even in the future.
the boy with disheveled, jet-black hair, round glasses and thunderbolt-shaped scar on his forehead will be - and i think is already - one of the most memorable literary character ever.
[picture from Photobucket]
