proud to be potter free

Proud to be Potter-free
Before anyone starts asking me the question again, let me just save you the inconvenience and tell you right away that no, I am not a Harry Potter fan, I have read only two of the series (one by choice, the other by force) and therefore no, I do not know anything about the latest shit that the Hogwarts brats have gotten themselves into. And no, I do not know anything about the death of an important character in this sixth extension of the Potter series.

What I do know is that JK Rowling now tops the list of the richest people in the UK.

I once actually thought of Harry Potter as a good read. I remember getting hold of the book for the first time when I was fourteen and thought that the book offered something fresh and innovative. Many authors have tried writing along the fantasy/magical genre but few managed to break through the critical market of children's and young adult’s. In fact, JK Rowling was turned down many times before getting Harry Potter published. So I had great faith in the book. Along with a small group of other people who was aware of the existence of Harry Potter & Co. at that time, I actually enjoyed reading the first book.

Then the movie came out. Big mistake. Potter mania hit the country and the kids at the child development centre where I was working at were suddenly adding Harry Potter to their list of “favourite superheroes”. All of a sudden, Superman and Spiderman and Batman and other heroes in spandex were reduced to being “childhood heroes”; their popularity limited to the very young ones who would eventually grow up and shift their admiration towards the hippier, cooler and more age-appropriate Harry Potter.

Potterism soon flooded the world. There were the movies, the video games, the CDRoms, the PS2 games, the websites, the apparel, the household items and a whole collection of Potter paraphernalia. It was also not until then that there was a sudden overflow of readers proclaiming to be ardent fans of Harry Potter. Bookstores began stocking up on Potter books and later, recognizing the immense popularity the series have gained, even organized special launching sessions and other Potter-promoting activities. Rowling was indeed happily counting the cash all the way to the bank.

I then stopped reading Harry Potter. It was getting too mainstreamed, too heavily publicized and too common. Everyone was reading it and talking about it, so what is there left for me to discover? The series were reviewed and commented by so many experts that they basically just shredded the work into pieces.

Thinking that perhaps I had been unjustly biased towards the series, I decided to give Rowling another chance and picked up Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban. The magical adventures (and misadventures) kept me reading but the impact disappeared right as soon as I finished the final page. There was no “Wow!” kind of feeling that I usually get after reading a good novel. Interestingly, I find Harry very much similar to my past crushes; they seem initially cute and interesting but eventually forgettable.

So please, don’t ask me again if I am into Harry Potter. I am into witchcraft and spells and love potions and broomsticks but Potterism is just not on the list.

Tickets to Hogwarts?

I’ll pass, thanks.