How Harry Potter Changed My Life

01:53:00

I created this blog a couple of years ago, but I think it's safe to say that I haven't really taken it very seriously. Sure, I'd post a few blog entries here and there, but particularly last year, I struggled to find the time to blog (thanks to school being so chaotic).

However, even though I'm going to be in my FINAL year of High School this year (ahhh!!), I've decided that it's time to truly take pride in Tyra's Bookshelf. So, whenever I'm busy with schoolwork, I am actually going to use blogging as a study break and take some time on the weekend or one night in the week to create a heap of posts that I genuinely love, and then post them sporadically throughout the week (maybe once or twice a fortnight? hopefully more if I'm not so busy?), instead of suddenly remembering that I haven't posted in a month in the middle of the night and then hurriedly creating a haphazard entry that I'm not 100% happy with! Luckily, in 2017, I have a few blog tours lined up and have even been in contact with some authors that have asked me to read and review their book - which is very exciting! I've also come up with some really awesome post ideas that I will be sharing with you guys this year! Stay tuned! (also, do you guys like my new header?)

Anyways, enough about that!

Today, I'm writing about something quite personal, and something that I'm sure a lot of you will find relatable. Today's blog post is about:

How Harry Potter Changed My Life

Honestly, I don't really think I need to explain this series, so I won't. I've decided that it's best to not ramble on and on about things most of you will already know, and instead focus on what I actually want to write about.

Let me give you some background info.

From the moment I understood the meaning of words, I have gotten joy out of reading. Seriously. Ask every member of my family and they'll all tell you that reading is just, my thing. Sitting down, opening a book and delving into another world has always felt right. Most children go through a stage where they read books, but eventually grow out of it (for example, a lot of my friends used to love reading, but now despise it and would rather watch paint dry), whereas, I could never imagine not having a bookshelf filled with novels in my bedroom and I could never see myself getting sick of reading.

But, years before I was born, and while I was a child (makes me sound old), in my opinion, I don't believe there was an emphasis on young people reading. I mean, of course teachers always tell their students to read every night, and kids would need to pick a book from the library every week, but there weren't any major inspirational books out there for children and young adults, so in our generation there was this sort of nonchalant attitude towards reading.

Yes, I was devouring books at this time. Yes, my friends were all doing the same. But, looking back, I've noticed that what young people in the world needed (and always will need) were books that hat sparked our imagination. Children are going to get excited about reading if they feel like children, and youth need something that caters to their curious, excitable selves.

And that's where Harry Potter comes in.

At about the end of Grade 2 - start of Grade 3 (2007-2008, would've been around 7 years old), I discovered Harry Potter. The world had already been captivated by Harry Potter (I was just a little 'late' to the party) and already there was a shift in the minds of children. Suddenly, reading was fun! Now boys and girls were able to travel to this world where magic actually exists. It also helped that movies came out as well, because it made it seem so much more real.

I think what attracted me to Harry Potter was that J.K Rowling's storytelling skills fuelled my imagination. Never had I really read any other books (not that I can remember) where I literally felt like I left this world and was in some parallel universe where anything that I imagined came true. Harry, Hermione and Ron became my best friends - as well as the best friends of millions of children, teenagers and adults alike. Harry Potter became a cult, or a religion. I was obsessed.

Thinking about it now, after having reread the series a million times, I realise that if I had never read the books, I probably wouldn't be as passionate about reading as I am today. Even though I've loved reading since I learned how, I think that after falling in love with Harry Potter, it gave me the confidence to read other 'more challenging' books - because as a child I hoped I would come across a book that made me feel the same way that Harry Potter did, and luckily for me, I have found books that I have fallen in love with. Without Harry Potter, I fear that I wouldn't have had the motivation to continue reading. Harry Potter made me believe that there were amazing books out there, waiting to be opened.

Apart from the fact that Harry Potter sparked my passion for reading, I just want to quickly say something about J.K. Rowling. She will forever be one of my main role models and inspirations. A simple idea on a train completely altered her life, yet I believe she's continued to stay humble and down-to-earth. She changed the way the world saw reading, and she created a world that I will always see as a second-home. I mean, I'm still waiting for my letter from Dumbledore, telling me I'm going to Hogwarts (I'm sure some of you are waiting for the same thing). To this day, if I see an owl, I'll immediately think of Hedwig and one of my earliest memories is of me playing Quidditch with my next door neighbour and the brooms from our laundries. Rowling's books are probably sitting on the bookshelves of millions and millions of people, and one day, I hope that I can do the same - I hope that I can write a book (or books) that young (and old) people will love for the rest of their lives.

And, the thing that I find the most funny is this - not many people backed Rowling at the start. Her literary agent told her that she would never make a fortune out of writing children's books, and several publishers rejected her because they thought it was too long and slow for children. Well, look at her now.

This was an incredibly long post, I'm sorry, I just try and write these posts as if it's my thoughts - soooo I get a little carried away.

But, have you ever experienced anything like this? Are there any books that you think have changed your life, or influenced your childhood? Do you feel a connection to Harry Potter too?

Thanks for reading, leave a comment below!

-Tyra xx

5 comments

Aj @ Read All The Things!2 October 2015 at 19:28
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Luna & Saturn18 January 2017 at 21:57
This is such an insightful post - for us, there's not one series or book that changed us. Ahhhh, good luck for your final year at high school! We still have a bit of time before we're in your shoes. Harry Potter was definitely something amazing for us as well, but like we said, it wasn't a cornerstone of building our love for reading. Thanks for much for passing by our blog before! :)
~ Pendragons
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Unknown19 January 2017 at 06:28
The Harry Potter books are also a series that had a huge impact on me. They’re the first books that helped me discover how much I enjoyed reading. It was actually my teacher that introduced me to it and I was a little late to the series but I’m so glad she did! The world, story and characters are all so amazing! I really enjoyed reading your journey Tyra :D
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