happy harry potter day

I am not finished with or even in the middle of reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince! Okay, I couldn't stand it, so I did read the first two chapters when Ginny and I got home from Barnes & Noble at 12:17 this morning. Our receipt for the books says they were purchased at 12:03 a.m., and we were first in the "A-C" line. Ginny, of course, stayed up all night, and as I knew she would, she's been trying to tell me stuff today. I am getting good at covering my ears in a hurry and running from the room, let me tell you.

I am heading to South Dakota at dark o'clock on Monday morning, so I'm doing my level best to avoid my HP book (and all HP discussion groups and emails) this weekend. I plan to listen to HBP on c.d. as I drive across Montana, Wyoming, and South Dakota. I know from past trips that Harry Potter makes the drive seem like nothing (it's like magic!). I can only imagine how exciting it will be to be listening to the book FOR THE FIRST TIME as I drive.

It's times like this that I'm a little glad that we live in a smaller town. Even with only a few bookstores, there was only a pleasantly crowded scene at Barnes & Noble last night. I'd say that children, young adults, and we older muggles were about even in numbers. And young and old alike were in costume (I wore my HP Convention t-shirt with "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good" on the back). There were refreshments, contests, and fun and games. The costume winner was a college-aged young man who looked exactly like Lucius Malfoy. His friend was dressed as Dobby, complete with one sock on. "Mr. Malfoy" gave me a chill as he walked by; he swished his cloak, he tossed his hair, he had that cane, and he was sneering at Dobby hovering at his heels.

I discovered Harry Potter early on, thanks to the Maud Hart Lovelace listren and a friend in London. Ginny and I were sent book 2 from the U.K., and it was a hot item passed among Ginny's friends in the days before it was available in the U.S.

I often think that maybe there was a similar excitement when the "Little House" books came out -- wouldn't it have been great if there had been parties and events and contests connected with the book releases back then? I can't even imagine having to wait a year or so to find out "what happened next" to Laura's family, but I know what a special part of history I've participated in connection with the Harry Potter books. Surely there were children and adults eagerly awaiting each "Little House" book with similar excitement?

Happy reading!
- posted by pioneergirl at 2:01 PM