Harry Potter and its many sequels have had an indelible mark on my youth as it goes hand-in-hand with my literacy journey. In fact, my literacy advocate stepped in and made sure Harry Potter was a part of my life.
When I was in fourth grade, my school had a book fair. If you remember book fairs, then you also understand that they are the greatest gift a school can give to a young reader, because, essentially, you are creating a tangible landscape of literary heroes, stories, and ideas that are designed to reach out to young children’s hearts and minds.
With that being said, I remember staring at the cover of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in a two-page, paper magazine and craving the story in that book. So, on the day of the book fair, I had my can of coins that I brought from home (I can’t imagine there was much money in that weird green can), and I waited all day in anticipation to go to the library, just so I could dodge the giant cutout of Clifford the Big Red Dog, run by the Michigan Chillers section, duck under the “READ” sign in the middle of the room, and finally get to the section for upper-elementary fiction.
And there it was. Harry Potter on his broomstick, flying under a stone archway with his hand awkwardly raised above his head to grab the Golden Snitch. Being excited and filled with wonder would be an understatement.
Of course, the book was too much money, and I couldn’t afford it at the time. Dejected, I went back to class.
My teacher, an angel I think, asked me if I had bought the book that I wanted. I told her no and shook my can of coins sadly before putting my hopes and dreams back in my desk. I then went to lunch, and put Harry Potter out of my brain for good. I couldn’t have the book, so there was no use in running it into the ground in my memory, right?
Truth be told, I wanted to forget, but I couldn’t. I went to recess afterward and probably thought about the boy wizard the whole time. I was an obsessive reader as a kid.
Upon returning to class, I opened my desk to prepare for the next subject and found a gift. It was a copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone with a sticky note on the cover.
“Enjoy your book! Ms. D.”
I read it front to back in just a few days. As I remember it, and I have to believe this to be true, the Harry Potter series was in full swing, as I can remember reading my teacher’s copy of The Chamber of Secrets and then The Prisoner of Azkaban. In fact, I recall that very teacher asking the other students if it would be okay if I sat in a quiet spot in the classroom to finish the book while they continued on with their lessons.
It turned out that it was okay with my peers…and I read the third Harry Potter as the class went on with their grammar lesson.
I am writing this today to remind you all to think fondly of your literacy advocates in life, whether they be a parent or a kindly teacher. Books can literally change your life.
