Honestly, am I the only person who bothered to read 'Hogwarts, a History'?

Harry, A History by Melissa Anelli

With all the Harry Potter books published and the fate of Harry’s known to the world, Harry Potter fans are relieved, nostalgic, and bittersweet about the lack of new Harry material. Sure, there is still one Potter film to be released, but come this fall, when the film’s six screens dwindle down to one, and only the ghosts of costumed fans pile on movie theater floors, Harry fans will be mourning the end of the era, the end of the last decade of their lives.

Part of the phenomenon of Harry Potter is due to the upsurge of the Internet over the last ten years, growing with Harry and his fans. The Internet is where fans came together to discuss theories, characters, “ships”, and their love for this series. Fan sites popped up all over, beginning as Angelfire and AOL user page dedications and resulting in award-winning online databases and news journals. One such page is The Leaky Cauldron. Webmistress Melissa Anelli found inspiration and solace in the Harry Potter series, and eventually took over The Leaky Cauldron with reputable Harry Potter sources, information, articles, and interviews. At the close of the ten year publishing reign of Harry Potter, she compiled her experience with Harry and his fans, and wrote Harry, A History.

For those familiar with Harry Potter, the name of the book should be enough to tell you what it’s about, but for those with lesser knowledge of the popular series, here’s a quick rundown and explanation. In the series, Hermione Granger consistently references a book entitled Hogwarts, A History whenever her friends (Harry and Ron Weasley) question a detail about their beloved school (Hogwarts). Harry, A History, then, would tell the history and tidbits about Harry Potter, but not the character of Harry (you’ll have to read the books for that), but rather the history of Harry, the phenomenon, and his legions of fans. Anelli’s book, through first-hand and secondary sources, describes what life was like for her, as webmistress of the most-popular series during it’s heyday, but also for it’s many fans. She describes the Internet culture and how it played its part in Harry’s upbringing, as well as the surge of Wizard Rock, Podcasts, the religious debate, the growth of popular Harry websites and shipping wars, etc. Further more and more personal, she details her reading experiences, how Harry helped her develop a close group of friends, and her personal journey to meet and inteview J.K. Rowling.

I really enjoyed this book. As a Harry Potter fiend, I grew up with the series and envy those who are reading Harry for the first time, as they are just discovering the magic that has so captivated me (and millions of others). When I read Harry over again, I still feel the way I did during my first ever reading, full of excitement and joy as I grew to love Harry and wait for my own Hogwarts letter. I recently mailed my sister the first book as a supplement to her Christmas gift, as she’s never read it and my mission is to spread Harry to any who have yet to love him as I do (this is also my mission with Hanson). Anelli’s book allowed me to go back to the beginning and enrich myself with more details of my favorite hero and experience Anelli’s journey with Harry, a different story than my own. When she met Jo, I was grinning broadly for her, excited with her. When she talked about the end of Harry and the emotional rollercoaster of Deathly Hallows (as well as the girl who read them after surviving Columbine), my own eyes swam with struggling tears. Sure there are some weaknesses, like repeating of information and an unsure target audience, but overall this book does what it intended to do: tell the story of one fan (and by default, many fans) and how Harry Potter changed her life.

For any fan, Harry, A History, is a great compliment to the series, to Harry, and to the fans.

http://www.harryahistory.com/

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photos taken from Google Image Search, I do not own.