I’ve been looking forward to the day H would start to borrow my books, and while the majority of them won’t be borrowed for several years yet, my Harry Potter set has been sat waiting for the right opportunity to be read.

Last year at school on World Book Day, all of H’s teachers dressed as different Harry Potter characters which was awesome – I was laughing out loud at them as they looked fantastic. We had started to read the first Harry Potter book, ‘The Philosopher’s Stone’ together, but if I’m to be honest, I didn’t enjoy reading it out loud – I never have enjoyed reading out loud. We got some of the way in, then I decided it might be easier to watch the film. We did, and left it until we knew H would ask to read more.

Bearing in mind she’s almost six and a half, so still quite young, I’m having to remember what happens in which books, although she has seen parts of the films (there’s nothing quite like spoilering films for your young child so they know which characters make it to the end by catching bits on television!). At the moment I want to stop around Book 3 and see how she has managed with the Dementors, which I think is around the time things start to get quite dark. We’ll wait a  little bit for Book 4, I think.

A week or two ago she picked up Harry Potter again – and read The Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets in record time (and has since asked for a Nimbus 2000 broom, and some Hogwarts robes) and is now settling into The Prisoner of Azkaban.  We bought the Box Set (affiliate link) of all the films on DVD over Christmas too.

For the Harry Potter films the same rules apply as Star Wars – The Force Awakens – she can’t unsee something bad, and the Harry Potter films jump from being PG’s to a 12A from the Goblet of Fire film onwards, so it’s a tricky ground to walk on to make sure she sees the film if it’s appropriate, without scaring her!

It has been quite interesting too, as I felt like the very first Harry Potter movie was identical to how I imagined it reading the book, whereas she sees it differently. I pointed out to H there is no right or wrong way to imagine things, as everyone has their own unique vision of how it is. I love it’s getting her imagination going!

We’re planning on going to the Harry Potter Studio Tour on my birthday in April this year, so this was another reason to encourage H to read the books, mainly so she didn’t ask too many questions – and I’m already seeing she’s become a cross between Hermione and Karen from Outnumbered, so I suspect she’ll be telling me what things are.

I showed H the inside front of my copy of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, as Shaun bought it for me as a wedding present, and wrote in the front – she’s loving that I got a book as a present, and I’m loving that she’s get as much enjoyment from them as I have.

But yes, at this point in time, maybe until she’s seven, we’ll start the fourth book, but talk about it. It will be read in the daytime rather than last thing at night, and we’ll see how we go. From September H has to wear a tie to her Junior school, so I’ve ordered her a Gryffindor one – I’ve told her if she can manage to work out how to tie it, then I’ll order her those Hogwarts Robes – there’s nothing like a bit of bribery to get her working a bit harder!