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What Is It About Harry?

© Sara E. Polsky

Last fall, my family and I went to a local Borders in the hopes of seeing J.K. Rowling and getting her to sign one of our Harry Potter books. Before you ask -- no, we didn't see her. In fact, we weren't even close. And I'm almost positive that that was the Borders where (according to an interview with J.K. Rowling in Writer's Digest) an employee was punched and bitten by angry fans when he didn't let them into the store. It was certainly a mob scene, and it left all of us wondering -- what is it that's so special about Harry Potter?

* Not only are the books well written and immensely readable, but they also take place in a fantasy world so believable that it draws in kids and adults all over the world. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and their compatriots are easy to cheer for as they battle evil around their school, Hogwarts. From the moment we learn that Harry has had a terrible childhood living with Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley Dursley, we are on Harry's side -- and we remain there thanks to Rowling's powerful storytelling.

* Nearly everything about Harry Potter's world is black and white. Although readers may not be sure who the bad guys are until the end, every evil character is thoroughly evil, and every good character entirely good. This simplicity makes it easy for readers to have strong feelings about the characters. Severus Snape and Voldemort, for instance, are fun to detest because they have absolutely no good qualities.

* Everybody loves magic. Whether it's The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, or the Harry Potter books, people love stories where magic is possible.

Many also like the Harry Potter stories for reasons that are harder to articulate. My father, for instance, likes the books because they have a certain cleverness, a "weirdness," that appeals to him. My brother, who was nearly bouncing off the ceiling when the fourth book arrived ten days ago, merely said that he likes the books because they're "interesting." And a friend of mine said J.K. Rowling's books have now become her favorites simply because they're so much better than anything we've ever had to read for school.

The 300,000+ advance orders for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the midnight parties at so many bookstores, and even the attacked Borders employee demonstrate that Rowling's books have a universal appeal, that people are spellbound by Harry's world -- that Harry Potter has, in fact, become a phenomenon.

The copyright of the article What Is It About Harry? in Reading for Teens is owned by Sara E. Polsky. Permission to republish What Is It About Harry? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.