by William Engelman

Created on: August 04, 2009

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series is an accomplishment in literature. It is the classical battle between good and evil that manages to startout as a youthful innocent piece of literature. Throughout the series the subtle tones of evil become darker gradually until the bitter end, which is then submersed in darkness as evil takes over.

The accomplishment of starting a serious for one demographic, then ending it for another, to follow the generation that was first intended for this novel is truly amazing. This is a phenomenon that is hard for an Author to accomplish. J.K. Rowling made her prowess as not only an author but also an icon to the scholastic literature world.

The first book of the serious is clearly meant for children of a substantial reading level with the setting and the tones being bright and comical. As the reader grows and experiences life, maturity, relationships; Harry Potter grows and experiences life as well. The children who read Harry Potter when the first book was released, are the same adults who read the final novel, where good defeats evil in dark undertones and serious scenarios.

Harry Potter is about the growth of not only a wizard but the growth of a child to an adult. J.K. Rowling's series is something that should be read one book per year as an Scholastic Program. Children can identify with so many themes as they gradually grow and relationships and scenarios become more serious and complicated.

Not only do we get to see one boy grow, we get to see a whole class of children grow not only in the novel but in real time. I remember how old I was when the first Potter novel came out and I thought how cheesy it was. I actually didn't even read one Potter book until I was nineteen and I was almost mad at myself for not jumping on the bandwagon when it first started. The books themselves can be enjoyed by any adult and can be accepted by any adult. If a fifty year old man where to pick up the first Harry Potter novel he would simply enjoy it, and as he kept reading the series as a whole, would find himself relating to when he was a child, teen, becoming an adult.

The Harry Potter series does become extremely dark by the end as well it should be. Death is real, evil is real, and we experience all of them as we become older. There is nothing wrong with understanding death, tragedy, and loss. Those unfortunate themes are something that at one time or another we must experience to help us grow as humans. The Harry Potter books help children as well as adults discover emotions that some probably did not realize they had. J.K. knew what she was doing when it came to making it dark and I applaud her; and I hope to see many more novels in the future for our young children.

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