Sure, it isn't perfect. And when you read something again and again, the flaws just become more apparent. (House-elves wanting to be slaves, anyone? And Cursed Child was just so, so terrible.) But I still love Harry Potter. Here are a few reasons why.
Flawed characters
I enjoy the fact that the heroes in Harry Potter have flaws. They hold grudges. They dislike people.
They can be unkind or irritating. They get angry. They make bad calls and have to live with the consequences. They learn from their mistakes.
Extraordinary courage by ordinary people
Along the same lines, characters in Harry Potter find the courage to fight evil against overwhelming odds. Most of them aren't particularly powerful. Many of them are still children. Yet they fight nevertheless.
Intelligent women
The Harry Potter series gave us a number of brilliant female characters. Many bookish girls identify with Hermione, of course. But there are also Professor McGonagall, Tonks, Lily, and Luna, to name a few.
Portrayals of loyalty
I enjoy the portrayals of loyalty in Harry Potter, especially between friends. Harry's friends stand by him, a few bobbles by Ron notwithstanding. Snape remains loyal to Lily to the bitter end.
Mixed stakes
The stories contain a satisfying mix of stakes, some mundane and others earth-shattering. In Harry Potter, a quidditch match can cause as much nail-biting as a duel with the greatest dark wizard of the age. and isn't that what being a teenager feels like, when an oral report at school seems as terrifying as jumping off of a cliff.
Vivid world-building
There aren't too many books with vivid enough world-building to spawn theme parks. We have all enjoyed imagining such places as Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and Diagon Alley. To provide that wealth of detail without getting bogged down is quite a feat.
Effective escapism
Let's be honest. We read fantasy because we need a break from reality. Harry Potter spins a web strong enough to block out the world, if only for a time.
Satisfying journey
The victories and defeats, the triumphs and tragedies, all combine to make a satisfying journey (save the epilogue and The Cursed Child). Mistakes had consequences. Good triumphed over evil. War is rightly portrayed as a terrible thing, and I think Rowling struck the right balance in terms of the deaths in the final battle, sad as they made me. Overall, the walk with Harry is a satisfying adventure.
Flawed charactersI enjoy the fact that the heroes in Harry Potter have flaws. They hold grudges. They dislike people.
They can be unkind or irritating. They get angry. They make bad calls and have to live with the consequences. They learn from their mistakes.
Extraordinary courage by ordinary people
Along the same lines, characters in Harry Potter find the courage to fight evil against overwhelming odds. Most of them aren't particularly powerful. Many of them are still children. Yet they fight nevertheless.
Intelligent women
The Harry Potter series gave us a number of brilliant female characters. Many bookish girls identify with Hermione, of course. But there are also Professor McGonagall, Tonks, Lily, and Luna, to name a few.
Portrayals of loyalty
I enjoy the portrayals of loyalty in Harry Potter, especially between friends. Harry's friends stand by him, a few bobbles by Ron notwithstanding. Snape remains loyal to Lily to the bitter end.
Mixed stakes
The stories contain a satisfying mix of stakes, some mundane and others earth-shattering. In Harry Potter, a quidditch match can cause as much nail-biting as a duel with the greatest dark wizard of the age. and isn't that what being a teenager feels like, when an oral report at school seems as terrifying as jumping off of a cliff.
Vivid world-building
There aren't too many books with vivid enough world-building to spawn theme parks. We have all enjoyed imagining such places as Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and Diagon Alley. To provide that wealth of detail without getting bogged down is quite a feat.
Effective escapism
Let's be honest. We read fantasy because we need a break from reality. Harry Potter spins a web strong enough to block out the world, if only for a time.
Satisfying journey
The victories and defeats, the triumphs and tragedies, all combine to make a satisfying journey (save the epilogue and The Cursed Child). Mistakes had consequences. Good triumphed over evil. War is rightly portrayed as a terrible thing, and I think Rowling struck the right balance in terms of the deaths in the final battle, sad as they made me. Overall, the walk with Harry is a satisfying adventure.
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