Pottered Out

So, you may remember my goal to read all the Harry Potter books this summer. I read the first three really quickly and enjoyed them so much; I was surprised by how much I didn't remember.

And then I picked up Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. And it was long and it seemed like the book that would never end. I can't say for sure that I would have finished reading had I not found myself home sick for a couple of days. But I soldiered through, and when finished, was even more determined/obsessed with reading the rest. I read book 5 (while watching the first movie, the only movie I'd seen) and moved on to 6, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Do you know what I remembered from book six? That Bill and Fleur were engaged and the ending, where Dumbledore dies. A lot happens in between! I'm really not the person that reads the beginning and skips to the end, but I'm wondering if I did that with this book. How could I have forgotten so much? And, the whole reason I didn't read the last book when it came out, was because I heard someone talking about horcruxes, and I thought, "Horcruxes? I don't remember those. Are they important? Maybe I better figure that out before picking up a book I'll be lost in." Well, we learn about horcruxes in the middle of book six. Which apparently I might have completely skipped. Anyway, I finished book six, and watched the movie, and now, I'm a bit tired and I still haven't read the last book!

Here's the thing - I read the first book not too long after it was published. I introduced several friends to Harry Potter. I went to a midnight showing of the first movie. I eagerly awaited the next book. And somewhere along the way, the books began to matter a little less.

I will finish this series. I'm determined. But, having read the first six in a little under two weeks, I'm taking a break. I'm reading something else (probably Rules of Civility by Amor Towles - New York, late 1930s - it couldn't be more different than Hogwarts). I'm pottered out.


Side note:
Here's an interesting article - Conjuring the Next Harry Potter, from The Wall Street Journal.