User blog comment:JoePlay/Wizarding World Giveaway/@comment-4147410-20110714165356

Harry Potter means so very much to me, but, what strikes me most, is that, in my sometimes cynical young adult years, it has been a testament to the fact that magic truly does happen. If a single series can unite people from across the world - from every age range, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic background imaginable - then, despite all of the horror and ugliness you see in the news, there is good in the world. A character like Harry, who is so strong because of how deeply he loves and how brave he is, appeals to a worldwide audience - not for his looks, not for his superhuman strength, but for his heart. A heroine like Hermione - smart, brave and loyal over all else - is admired by young girls and women bombarded with images of plastic beauty and superficiality. I have seen this first hand, for I have had the honor of introducing the Harry Potter series to eight third grade classes in the past few years. My students introduced it to me, as they asked me to read them the first book. Since then, I've become an avid fan, and have returned the favor by students gave me in recommending it by organizing a Harry Potter classroom theme year after year, always concluding with a reading of the Sorcerer's Stone. I have watched young children become so excited over JK Rowling's words that they have outright cheered, laughed, cried and literally booed when the daily chapter came to an end. For a simple book to evoke such emotion in people, it has to be magical. Thank you, Harry Potter, for bringing such joy into my life, the lives of so many, and for proving to the weary world that there IS good and magic in life!