User blog comment:JoePlay/Wizarding World Giveaway/@comment-4146696-20110714125721

I remember the first time I read Harry Potter. I was in third grade and everyday we had our "reading time". I had recently gone to a book fair and saw this book that had a boy on a broom stick that looked my age and so I bought it. I noticed there were not any pictures...but I was up for the challenge. I was nine years old what can you expect? As i read the pages of spells, magical creaters, wands, Qudditch and mystery I was instantly hooked. I could not believe a child like me of age 9 could read this book of 300 pages or so.

Harry Potter is something that I grew up with. I am a loyal reader and viewer of the movies. In a way Harry Potter has helped me with my own life. Some instances in the novel helped me understand the things I did not understand as I went through tough times in my life. The death of Sirius Black had taken a HUGE toll on me especially when the movie came out. I had lost my father and I had felt like I had lost everything else. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix reminded me of my own struggle to be happy and push through the feelings of no one understanding me. But when Harry fights off Voldemort in the Ministry of Magic and tells him that he "will never know love or friendship"...it helped me realize that I need to embrace my life.

Harry Potter means a lot to me. J. K Rowling has done an excellent job of giving characters life, stories, struggles, and moments of greatness. I do not think the emotions I feel about Harry Potter can even be expressed. Since tonight is the premier at midnight I will not only feel bittersweet towards the end... I will feel like I lost a friend who has helped me through my life and most importantly helped me understand that life is beautiful and good will always rise over evil. Thank you J. K. Rowling for creating this masterpiece.