Pottermania

Evidently, the fifth time is a charm. The fifth Harry Potter movie, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," released recently to huge audiences, conjuring up a total of $140 million during its opening weekend. The seventh and final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, is set to be released on Saturday, July 21.

 

CNN.com asked readers and viewers to submit their comments and photos on the new movie and on the Harry Potter craze in general. Check out this comment from the article:

 

"Michelle Hillison of Cary, North Carolina, compares the books' current popularity to the timeless appeal of author Roald Dahl's classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She said she enjoys seeing her daughter interested in reading these books, adding that with all of the distractions available to today's kids, Harry Potter stands out from movies and other forms of entertainment they are exposed to. 'You just don't see a lot of dark mystery in movies these days,' Hillison said. 'It's all animated and chipper. It's all so sanitized. ... You don't inspire imagination if you lay everything down in front of kids.'"

 



As a child, I loved books like A Wrinkle in Time, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Little Princess, The Secret Garden, Oliver Twist, and the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys mystery series. Yes, they were "magical," in a sense, but not in the same dark way that the Harry Potter books are.

 

Are “dark mystery," demonic power and the casting of spells what today's kids now need to inspire their imagination?

 

I'm also troubled by the article's mention of Harry Potter Easter baskets containing magic cloaks and "cockroach clusters," supposedly brought over from Merry Ol' England by the Easter Bunny himself.

 

What do you think about the whole Harry Potter gig? Is Harry Potter harmless for kids or not? Let me know your opinion by posting your comments here. Thanks!

 

My brother-in-law, Dillon Burroughs, also posted some comments on the CNN.com site. To view them, please click on this link and then check out “Sound Off" at the bottom of the page. Read the article!