Back when the Harry Potter books began to gain popularity — or perhaps I should say that they began to become inescapably popular — I was often faced with the “To allow it or not to allow it” question. Amanda was too young to be interested in them on her own, and I felt that seven or eight was too young, but being the little bookworm that she is, I knew that the Harry Potter question would come up in our household at some point.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about the witchcraft issue of it. We’re not talking about Glinda the Good Witch as portrayed in the Wizard of Oz. Witchcraft, or Wicca, is real these days. In fact, each time I saw those tables set up in bookstores inspired by the Harry Potter craze about casting spells and charms, I shuddered. I knew that Harry Potter was a young boy who was sent to a school to learn witchcraft. I’m not sure I want my daughter to be so charmed by witchcraft, I thought.
So, when the discussions came up, mostly with Christian parents of children older than mine, I generally leaned to the side of “I don’t really like it.”
But. But. But what about the Wizard of Oz? What about Narnia for that matter? Or the Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings fantasy? These people who were taking a hardline stance against the magical world of Harry Potter would often endorse, allow, and even encourage entry to these magical worlds.
I had other Christian friends who had fallen in love with Harry, as adults. I had read reviews all over the blogosphere and witnessed the excitement when a new book was released. So a few years ago, I purchased years one and two, in trade paperback (my favorite binding). I decided to find out for myself if I thought these books would be appropriate for Amanda. (And to be honest, I was looking forward to being captivated myself, regardless of whether or not I decided to let Amanda read them).
Honestly, the first one didn’t really capture my heart. In fact, were it not for the declared love of the franchise from friends and reviewers whom I trust, and the fact that I had already bought Year 2, I may have just left it at that. But oh, book two. With each subsequent year, I became more impressed with J.K. Rowling’s skill of telling a great story, building suspense, and developing characters.
I decided that she could certainly read the first two books when she was ready. Finally at the end of fourth grade, she began to ask. Since she was 9 1/2 at the time, and Harry was 11 in the first book, I thought it was perfectly age appropriate. I let her begin the series, with the stipulation that I would not let her read any books that I hadn’t yet read, and that I could tell her to stop at any time.
As expected, she zipped through the first book and desperately wanted to read the second one. I made her wait a month or two, and then let her read book two. Since it was summer, she devoured that one even more quickly and begged for year three. I again made her wait a bit, knowing that I still hadn’t read book five myself. She ended up reading books three and four over the summer, and I read book five on our vacation.
At that point, I decided that she should take a little Harry break. He and his school pals are teenagers, and I generally like her to stay in an age-appropriate content level. The stories are still magically (no pun intended) wonderful, but the language is a bit harsher, and the emotions are a bit stronger.
You see, had she begun reading the books ten years ago (I mean, if she had been her present age, not a one-year old prodigy), she would have had to wait a year in between books since Rowling was still writing them. She would have grown up along with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. But being a voracious and fast and competent reader, she has the ability to polish off the whole series in less than half a year. I think it’s best for her to wait.
I’ve enjoyed sharing them with her, and I’m sure that I’ll let her read another one within this next year. But I think I’m doing her a favor. Just as I have chosen to draw out the series myself (originally with the intent of waiting for the trade paperbacks’ releases), she has the beauty of knowing that more adventure awaits her. While she waits, we’ll probably enjoy watching a few more of the movies, and perhaps I’ll encourage her to read the earlier books again if she’d like.
There’s no rush. I’ve no doubt that Harry and his friends will live forever and ever and ever. Amanda will be able to share them with her children at the time that she deems appropriate as some of her favorite childhood books.
Managing Editor Jennifer Donovan is a contributing editor at 5 Minutes for Mom. She has been blogging at Snapshot for over two years.
That sounds like a really wise and balanced approach.
I think this is a very smart approach. Also, kudos to you for reading these for yourself before deciding whether or not your daughter should read them. Many Christian parents I know never took the time to do this, and I feel they could doing their children a disservice.
I have no problem if someone reads Harry Potter (or any book, really) and decides it’s not something they want their child to read. I think making an informed decision is the best course of action with any kind of media aimed at children — books, movies, music. No one knows your child better than you do, and something that’s right for another child of the same age might not be a good fit for your child right now.
Also, having read the books yourself, you can address some of the issues in the books with your daughter — really open up a dialog and use the books as a teaching tool. My mother did this with me with some of the Babysitter’s Club books that were popular when I was young, and it helped me in more ways than one — I understood the books better, and I also knew that my mother really cared about me because she’d taken such an interest in what I was reading.
That’s a pretty awesome approach. It does speak volumes of your love for Amanda because you are taking reading time out to care for her. She’s going to remember that — just as Ruth demonstrated in her last comment!
I really appreciate your thoughts on Potter. You are making me think that maybe one day I’ll pick them back up again and see what Year 2 is like. I’m intrigued due to your approach and recent thoughts on the matter.
Thank you for deciding to read the books before passing judgement on them. I completely agree with Ruth – as a parent you need to monitor what your child reads, but the only way to do that successfully and fairly is by reading things for yourself.
I read the first book, mostly to see what all the hype was about. I did not have a problem with it, but I was not really excited about the story. My mom read has read all of them, and really likes them, so last winter I decided to give book 2 a try. After reading it, I was hooked. I had a new baby and was breastfeeding at the time, so I just devoured books 2 through 6 during all the hours I was sitting and nursing him. Anyway, I too appreciate your approach to making sure each one is appropriate for your daughter. There are certainly things in them to discuss as she reads, such as the harsh language, but I think that is a great way to handle it. The later ones are definitely more complex, so even though it is hard to wait, she will probably enjoy them more being a little older.
You are a wise parent. I think you handled this very well.
I agree with a previous poster. Thank you for reading them before passing judgment. So many Christians that I know, simply assumed they’re books about evil witchcraft. Being Christian myself, I knew that it was probably not the case, simply because my father had loved them. I knew that if he did, they certainly weren’t Wiccan-related books! I read them and loved them.
My oldest son is 10 and has loved the Harry books. He started reading #4 this year, but it’s been a bit much for him and so he’s set it aside for other books. I have no doubt that he’ll go back to it and the others, eventually. Even though he’s seen all the films, so far, the books are still different and each is a bit harder to read.
I love Harry. I love the story, I love the writing. Our family has so much fun with Harry.
Great post, Jennifer! I was one of those who loved the books from the start, and my husband was the same way. Though our oldest hasn’t asked to read them yet, we will take an approach similar to yours when he does.
And good for you for reading them in order to make your decision about Amanda. Very wise.
I did the same reading the books first to see what all the “hype” was about and I loved them. though they do get older and def. darker by the last few.
same for the movies. so for my daugher (9) we only let her watch the first 3 or so. she hasn’t asked to read the books yet though. but when she does i’ll be ready to talk about them with her.