A book that I could easily fall into is, of course, the wizarding world of Harry Potter. Not that I took to it right away. When given a copy at the age of five, I was put off by the bespectacled man on the front cover with the funny looking face. At that time I was far more interested in pursuing my dreams of being a mermaid than a book about a man getting on a train. Luckily, that disinterest did not last long and soon I was hooked.
“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”
I devoured the pages of this marvellous new world. Like many other children, I was desperate for my Hogwarts letter, desperate to meet my favourite characters and desperate to live within the pages. While others eventually grew out of Harry Potter, I clung on. J.K Rowling wrote 3 main distinctive characters who were all, in one way or another, lonely despite all the people around them. I felt like I could identify with that.
"We could have been killed. Or worse, expelled."
Hermione Granger became my idol. She wasn't pretty, but never seemed to care. She had far better qualities. When Emma Watson was cast in the role, my Hermione Granger costume now included me drawing my eyebrows on with black eyeliner. It did not look good.
But one of the greatest things Rowling did was give such a moving metaphor for depression. The dementors made everything clearer, easier to explain to those who did not understand. One of my coping mechanisms now is conjuring my own patronus in my mind.
In her children's books, Rowling taught us tolerance and empathy. Be it for the ostracised Remus Lupin, the tormented Nevile Longbottom or those whose blood was not seen as 'pure', These were all small introductions into the injustices of the big wide world. Evidently she did something right as a 2014 study showed that those who had grown up reading Harry Potter were more likely to be tolerant and less likely to be biased against minority groups.
Another clever thing Rowling did was to make her characters so much more than stereotypes of good and evil. She identified that we can't keep telling children that everything is black and white. The heroes of the story aren't all good, just as the villains aren't all bad. Apart from Umbridge. She's just awful.
As I've gotten older, Rowling has held onto her place as my literary hero, but also claimed the spot on my social media hero. Her straight talking comments on the world are gold, and I agree with about 9 and 3/4 of them.
So happy 20th anniversary, Jo. Thank you for giving us all such a wonderful gift. One of these days I'll summon my Gryffindor courage to message you directly, but for now this will do.
As Alan Rickman said "It is an ancient need to be told in stories. But the story needs a great storyteller."
I leave you with some of my favourites, from books and films.
I leave you with some of my favourites, from books and films.
And the greatest one of all