Harry Potter Tag

Today is not only Harry Potter’s birthday but also the release day of The Cursed Child! I am actually currently absorbed in the book/script, speaking and interacting with no one until I have finished it. Once I have finished it and have had time to process it I will be posting a review.

I saw Confessions of  a Bibliophile do this tag recently and thought it looked like fun. I also wanted something to post today in honor of Harry Potter’s birthday and release day.

As I have stated numerous times on here I am obsessed with Harry Potter. It was the first book series that I fell in love with. It was the first time I remember wanting to be part of another world. I felt part of something and, being around the same age as Harry as the books progressed was fun too.

Harry Potter is the reason I wanted to become a writer. (I go into greater detail about that in this post here). I loved how I could escape into this story and feel a real connection with these characters. I loved that even now at age 27 I feel this deep connection to this story. I can’t wait until I have my own children one day and can introduce them to this series. This series has become much more than a story to me.

Without further ado here is the Harry Potter tag!

1. Favorite book?

        My favorite book is without question, Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban. I have read this one about 15 different times. When I spent six weeks studying abroad in London, England, one of the main things I wanted to get was the British version of this book.

I love this one because it is where so much is set off. We get this deeper look at Harry’s father and his past. We meet Sirius and Lupin, two hugely influential characters. It was also the first time that things started to intertwine more. This is when the series became much more complicated than we saw in the first two books. Voldemort doesn’t make an appearance in this book, yet he is felt.

loved this book just because of how much it set up and how much potential it showed for this series. This is the point when I knew this series was going to be much more than a simple story about fighting Voldemort.

2. Favorite Movie?

            My favorite movie would probably have to be the last one, Deathly Hallows part 2. I loved the action. There was some great lines and I felt it wrapped up the series well. It gave the emotion and was close to the books. There were a a few things that I would change but overall it was my favorite.

3. Least Favorite Book?

     I don’t dislike any of the books. I love them all so much but if I had to choose I probably would choose Sorcerer’s Stone. Not that it is bad, not even close. But it is the first book so there is a lot of introduction to things. There is a lot of basic storyline set up, so to me it is the slowest. I know all the details so well that it doesn’t thrill me as the others do on rereads. Though the illustrated version gave it new life and I did love that one! (My review of the illustrated version is here).

 

 

4. Parts of the books/movies that make you cry?

I don’t cry easily. I may get choked up but I can count on one hand the number of times I have cried at a book or movie. And Harry Potter isn’t on that list. Though that being said there were a few moments that got me a bit choked up.

   The first one that came to mind was the death of Dobby. I adored Dobby. He was so sweet and had such a good heart. He was brave and ambitious and tried to live outside the box of society. He was the best little guy. His death and the effect on Harry got to me. He gave his life for someone he loved and that hurt. When predicting deaths in the last book that was not one that I saw coming.

Another scene that gets to me is in Order of the Phoenix. It is the scene at the end when Harry goes back to Dumbledore’s office and he is destroying the office and yelling at Dumbledore about Sirius’s death. He is so full of grief he can’t control himself. He throws things, he screams, he is breaking down. Dumbledore just watches him do it without trying to stop him. This is one of my all time favorite scenes because of how real it felt. I could feel Harry’s pain, I could see myself acting like him if I had lost someone I loved. It gives me chills every time I read it. So much emotion in so few pages.

5. Favorite Character?

    Hands down my favorite character has always been Sirius. I adore his character. I loved that he became this father/ brother figure to Harry. Their relationship was heartwarming. I loved that he stepped up without question to help his best friend’s son.

Sirius’s relationship with Lupin and James was great. A man who grew up being told that anyone who wasn’t pure-blood was wrong and should be looked down on, became the opposite of that. He stood up and fought for what he thought was right. He loved those around him with all his heart. He was this beacon that was always hovering on the edges from the third book on. He just was the breath of life for Harry that I loved .

6. What would your Patronus be?

   I have always wondered this. I would think maybe some type of bird? I am not sure. It is something that is close to you or represents something for you. I guess a bird because I like to soar above expectations and the boxes people try to put me in. Honestly I am not entirely sure.

 

7. If you could have the Resurrection Stone, The Invisibility Cloak or The Elder Wand which would you choose?

   Going by the story and what each does to people I would have to choose the Invisibility Cloak. The Resurrection Stone would be nice to have to talk to people who have passed but I think I would become obsessed with it and it would consume me like in the story. The Elder Wand is too much power for me.

I think having the Invisibility Cloak would be the best to use and wouldn’t corrupt me. I would love to be able to go around unseen. As someone with social anxiety that would help me a lot sometimes!

8. What House would you be in?

  According to Pottermore I would be a Hufflepuff and I agree. I am proud to be a Hufflepuff. I am not courageous enough to be a Gryffindor, not cunning or ambitious enough to be a Slytherin and I am not clever enough to be a Ravenclaw.

I fall in the middle of a lot of those and I think that is what Hufflepuffs are best at. They have all those traits but in smaller quantities. They know how to work with all sorts of people. They are the reliable ones. They are the ones that you can have be part of your group no matter what you do because they adapt well. I feel like that is me.

I am also a Puckwudgie as well!

9. If you could meet any member of the cast, who would it be?

          I would love to meet Emma Watson. She has done so much since she played Hermione. She grew up without falling apart. She stands up and uses her voice to help others. She is smart and I would love to sit down and talk with her for a while.

 

10. If you were on the Quidditch team, which position would you play?

   This is a difficult one. I have zero athletic ability (I’ve tried just about all the sports). I think if I had to play I would probably try Keeper. I don’t think I would be able to see and track the Snitch. I have no power in my arm so heating the Bludgers would be out. And I don’t think I could fly fast enough to be a Chaser. I think Keeper would be my best bet. But even then I am sure I would fail miserably at it.

11. Were you happy with the ending?

I loved how it ended. I loved that everything was wrapped up and that we got a glimpse of Harry ‘s future life. I felt like the journey ended well. It left life still in the story but gave an end to this epic adventure in just the right way.

12. How much does Harry Potter mean to you?

    As I stated above Harry Potter is everything to me.Many people have something to obsess over; for some it is a song or a tv show or a movie. For me it was this book series.

For a girl who felt like she did not belong  in her early school years this book was my life raft. Harry found a way to belong. But even when he found this new life nothing was easy. He fought for everything and in the end he won. It showed me that no matter what comes at you, if you have the right people with you and don’t give up, you can succeed.

I don’t know if I would have wanted to write without this series. I don’t know if I would have become a bookworm without this series. I would not be the nerd I am without this series. These books will always be there and waiting for me if I need a reminder of the many lessons it has taught me. It is a series I will cherish forever.

 

I know some of those answers got a bit of long winded but talking short and sweet about Harry Potter is outside of my skill set. If you love Harry Potter feel free to do this tag as well.