3rd Time's the Charm: HARRY POTTER, again!

Officially, this is my 3rd time reading Book 1 of the HARRY POTTER series.  It just gets better and better every time.  The first time I read it, I highlighted/took note of a small handful of details--very specific details that I felt would be important in the long run.  The 2nd reading, I highlighted details that revealed important "secrets" that we learn later in the series, as well as other details that really stood out to me.  This 3rd time, I sill highlighted a lot.....just things that stood out to me. 

One thing that's been driving me crazy throughout each reading of the series as been the misuse of subject/pronoun agreement with Indefinite pronouns.  I would like to say that it must be an American editor's mistake in the "translation" from British to American English.  I can't imagine, though, that between J. K. Rowling, her British editors, AND American editors that none of them caught the mistakes!  And there are a quite a few.  It's very disturbing to see them so rampant in a series as popular as this one.

This series, especially the first book, will go down among the great classics and will continue to be read as long as literature classes are taught.  It really does deserve that.  Rowling did a superb job with each individual story as well as with the series overall.  Wow.  Seven books overall and it appears that she didn't make any huge plot errors!  That's HUGE!  Especially considering that she wrote each book as they were being published....so she was writing the next one (if not already 2 ahead) when the previous one was finally released to the public.  Yet she pulled the whole thing off and we, her audience, love it to the point of fanaticism.

I didn't read the books for years....not because I didn't want to, but because James kept throwing away the copies I'd been given.  I'd had 3 different people GIVE me copies of the books and James threw away each and every copy.  Then, finally, my British Lit class a few years ago (2009, I think it was--or was it 2010?) chose to read the book for class.  That time, when I brought home a copy of the book, James couldn't throw it away because it was reading for school!  Needless to say, I flew through all 7 books quickly and turned right around and read all 7 books a 2nd time!  And now, I'm reading the WHOLE series for a 3rd time!  And I love it just as much this time as I did the first time.

One disappointing thing about reading the series is the knowledge that even if I ever write and publish something, it'll NEVER be as GREAT, AWESOME, STUPENDOUS as the HARRY POTTER series.  I guess if I'm shooting for that level of fame, I shouldn't be writing anyway.  The object is to write because I HAVE to write--for myself.  And I do feel that way, but nudging me in the back of my mind is still the thought that I, nor anyone else for that matter, will ever hope to achieve even 1/4 of the incredible world that is HARRY POTTER........

I am so excited to re-read the whole series--again!  I'm really only NOT reading right now because Samuel's Nook needs recharging.  I can read while it charges, but where we have it plugged in is right over a vent and it's cold sitting in the recliner!  So I'm letting it charge for a little while before I get back to reading Book 2 again!

BTW:  in case you missed that, for THIS reading, I'm reading the whole series on Samuel's Nook.  It's different.  I like it in a lot of ways.  One thing in particular that I like is that I can, at a glance, see everything I've highlighted and all my comments.  That's a really great feature.  One thing I wish I could do on the Nook that I can't is have a random Notes page where I post comments and names of characters and relationships, etc.  If you look on the inside front cover of Samuel and I's copy of Book 2, HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS, you'll see that I've listed all the characters in the book, including the years of the Weasleys as well as information about the different Houses at Hogwarts, and, because I've also used this book in my British Lit class, Quiz questions are listed, too--on post-its.  If I had the random Notes page that I could create, I could continue with that......I'll have to dig a little deeper and see if that feature is there.

One negative about reading on the Nook is that it's actually Samuel's Nook.  When he wants to read or is at school, I have to find something else to read--or do.  That's really frustrating when all I want to do is read HARRY POTTER!!!  I can't wait to catch up to Samuel!  He's finishing up Book 6 and going to read Book 7 over the summer.  I think I'll be on Book 7 before he finishes it.....I should make a little wager with him about that.....See who can finish first.  Maybe if he finishes Book 7 before I do--maybe even before I even start it, he'd get.....something he REALLY wants.........hmmmmmmm.  I'll have to think hard about this one because everything he really wants right now is expensive!!!!