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mrdreamjeansI just got out of bed, not from laziness, but because I didn't go to sleep that long ago. I knew the final installment of Harry Potter would be a straight-through read. I started at 4pm yesterday and finished at 3:15am. I changed locations in the house about 15 times, ate my meals one handed, precariously balancing the book, barely tasting what I was eating, I was so engrossed. For a few hours, I put away the problems of my life and savored the pacing, the plot, escaped to a magical world where the characters have to come to feel like friends. It was an evening and night where the television stayed off and the only sounds in the house were the ticking of a clock and the beating of my heart.
758 pages ..... A highly satisfying read and conclusion ... This series has taken my nephew Brennan from ages 11 to 20 and created a special bond between us. Bren was a shy, awkward 11 year old, outstripped by his twin and older brother in many ways; his main accomplishment was that he had picked up a trait from his dad's (his uncle's) side of the family, a love of reading. He devoured the first Harry Potter book within hours, called me and said, "Uncle Neil, I really think you will like this book too." I went out and bought the book for myself. He was so very right. As each book came out, I bought two ... one for Brennan and one for me. It became a thread in our family tapestry, a connection that we alone shared. It became "our thing" to do ...read the books and compare notes. See the movies and debate.
Brennan has grown into an assured, caring adult with a wicked sense of humor; has evolved from a pudgy 11 year old who mumbled, into an articulate young man, with an eye for the ladies. Yet, he never leaves a visit with his favorite uncle without giving me a hug or telling me that he loves me. He gets it. He gets the message of the books:. No one is alone in this world. If we aren't born to families who offer unconditional love and value us for who we are ... if we've lost our families because we are different ... or simply because they were taken from us much too soon ... we take a different route to family. We choose our friends and they us; we create our own families, families who love us hogwarts and all.
758 pages ..... A highly satisfying read and conclusion ... This series has taken my nephew Brennan from ages 11 to 20 and created a special bond between us. Bren was a shy, awkward 11 year old, outstripped by his twin and older brother in many ways; his main accomplishment was that he had picked up a trait from his dad's (his uncle's) side of the family, a love of reading. He devoured the first Harry Potter book within hours, called me and said, "Uncle Neil, I really think you will like this book too." I went out and bought the book for myself. He was so very right. As each book came out, I bought two ... one for Brennan and one for me. It became a thread in our family tapestry, a connection that we alone shared. It became "our thing" to do ...read the books and compare notes. See the movies and debate.
Brennan has grown into an assured, caring adult with a wicked sense of humor; has evolved from a pudgy 11 year old who mumbled, into an articulate young man, with an eye for the ladies. Yet, he never leaves a visit with his favorite uncle without giving me a hug or telling me that he loves me. He gets it. He gets the message of the books:. No one is alone in this world. If we aren't born to families who offer unconditional love and value us for who we are ... if we've lost our families because we are different ... or simply because they were taken from us much too soon ... we take a different route to family. We choose our friends and they us; we create our own families, families who love us hogwarts and all.
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