By Shani Patel
June 26 marked 20 years since the release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone- the very first book that started it all.
But what is ‘it’ exactly? Well, 20 years ago there was nothing but a woman without much money, a universe in her head that had been refused by publishers 12 times, and the advice ‘not to quit her day job’. And yet, now, J.K. Rowling is the author of a bestselling book series which has sold more than 400 million copies worldwide - with fans all over the globe, eight movies, and even a theatre production. Pretty impressive, right? So… How on Earth did it get so popular?
It’s quite simple, really. Readers want to lose themselves in a fictional world, they want adventure, mysteries, humour, excitement- add a little wizardry and a touch of witchcraft and you’re there! (And as it turns out, all those things make for pretty good movies as well…)
I’m currently 15, and I love and always will love the Harry Potter books (“Even after all this time?” “Always.”), but there’s a huge range of people who enjoy them. I suppose that being a teenager and reading the series has its benefits; every time I’ve read the books so far I’ve been the age of Harry in one of them. And although I, unfortunately, don’t attend a school of witchcraft and wizardry, I’ve still been able to relate to certain aspects of his life, like the endless homework and essay-writing.
Plus, maybe the Harry Potter universe isn’t as far from ours as we think. I know, I know- we don’t have magical spells and unicorns and dangerous dark wizards intent on destroying everything. But, have you considered that not everything is completely alien to us? We’ve all felt under pressure like Harry, and inadequate like Ron and mocked like Hermione. We might not have werewolves, but there are groups of people who are treated with the same kind of prejudice. We’re familiar with politicians and governments becoming corrupted. (No comment.) We don’t have Dementors, but depression comes pretty close. And we might not be able to cast Patronuses, but we feel the same happiness that is required to create them.
We find pieces of ourselves in these characters (although hopefully not the soul-splitting mass-murderer kind); that’s why we love them so much.
Personally, I was introduced to the Harry Potter world in around 2012, as I became increasingly perplexed by my friends talking about strange words like ‘Snape’ and ‘Dobby’. What?!
Fortunately for me, all the books were already out, and had been for some time, so I was free to explore the world of Harry Potter at my own rate- which turned out to be quite fast, actually, as I found myself becoming slowly but surely obsessed.
I did all the usual, nerdy things: joining Pottermore, finding out which House I was in (Ravenclaw, if you’re interested), choosing a favourite character (Remus Lupin, obviously). I discovered the huge fan base, a community full of talented, enthusiastic people all connected through their love of a certain wizard and his adventures.
This franchise really is important to a lot of people. It’s a brilliant source of entertainment and a safe haven from the real world. And after all, why would you deal with your own problems when you can read about Harry’s? (Suddenly your maths homework doesn’t seem so bad when Harry is getting chased by a fire-breathing dragon.)
Reading the series is an adventure in itself. So crack open a bottle of Butterbeer, cast your books towards you with a swift ‘Accio!’ and indulge yourself in the magic of Hogwarts once again.
