Right Age for Harry Potter

I read the first book to my oldest daughter when she was 6. She absolutely loved it! The problems began when I immediately started on the 2nd book. We got about a quarter of the way through it when I realized she was getting really scared. We decided to put it away for awhile, but then she wasn't ready to try reading it again for a VERY long time. Her younger sister read the entire series on her own before my oldest was even willing to pick it up again. She eventually did read all the books and she became a big fan, but I think if I hadn't tried reading them to her when she was so little, she would've enjoyed them at an earlier age...say, 9 or 10 instead of 12/13. If I were you I'd wait a few years. Oh, and right now I'm reading the Beezus and Ramona books to my 5 year old and she's loving them! The movie is coming out next month so the timing is right. :-)

Don't think Harry Potter is right for any child. Harry Potter is scary its all about wizards and witches. That scares me.

I have to 2nd that being scared, sad, happy, etc., is desirable in reading... (*I* cry during sad parts!!)... it's the line though that we walk between feeling emotions and being overwhelmed by them. So when you say cry, I'm assuming you don't mean bawled for hours, inconsolable, with nightmares for weeks. Crying = healthy, losing it = "okay, we'll wait a bit on this one".

For my son, Disney cartoons were terrifying for him as a toddler... but StarWars, Indian Jones, Pirates of the Carribean, & Harry Potter weren't. One of the things that's nice about HP is that JKR originally wrote them for her kids. So they get increasingly more mature as you read them. The first book is VERY childlike, and then each book gets a little "older". The first 3 my son loved, book 4 started getting scary, so we held off a year and a half, and we're just about to do book 5 after waiting another yearish on that one.

It's a bizarre thing with children's lit. Many of the themes (from the boxcar children being orphans -FREAKED my son out, to Matilda and her evil uncaring parents, to Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, to x, y, z) are just really, really out there. Sometimes kids handle them with aplomb, sometimes they are just too much. I know my kiddo handled "adult" things better than "children's" things for YEARS... because adult things have subtly, very rarely is it GOOD against EVIL, like you find in children's thing. I mean really... Snow White's mum first wanted her dead in the woods, and then poisoned her... the death of the loving mum to the evil step sisters and slavery in Cinderella... being turned into a helpless shriveled thing in Little Mermaid... Stephan King could have a field day with these themes.

So I would say... try it and see. If she loves it, she loves it. If not... it can live on the shelf for a few years.

HP is a dark series, not because of the ooo skeery witches (oh please) but because of the ugliness that is rather starkly displayed in human nature. that being said, i think way too many kids are deprived of great literature because it's now presumed that they (as a collective) can't handle it, so the wonder of grimm's and traditional mother goose have been sanitized and disnified out of recognition. only a parent can decide at what age THEIR particular individual child is ready to handle themes like those explored in HP. a very sensitive child might find it a bit much, at which point one can stop, right? my boys were very precocious and we were reading adult novels like dune, shogun (mildly edited) and gone with the wind when they were still in the single digits. i would have no qualms about reading HP1 to a 5 year old, i'd just be tuned in to her reactions and either stop (less desirable) or use it as an opportunity to discuss and explore (preferable) if saw her getting upset.
khairete
S.

Make sure you read them first if you haven't already. Since you have already started reading longer chapter books to her, you'll be able to judge better how you think she will respond to them. And if you worry that you won't really enjoy reading a "kids" book, I read them starting at age 25 pre-baby and couldn't get enough of them.

I plan to read them to my son as soon as he is ready. I don't know when that will be, but since I love them so much, I also don't want to do them too soon and take away some of the enjoyment of them if he is too young. I agree with the others that it is good for kids to get emotionally involved in books. You will know best whether they are too scary or too confusing or the characters are too mean. And you will know when your daughter has a good grasp on what is real and what is make believe and will never be real.

Hi E.,

This is a great question. I agree the themes in the series are dark and complex.

Before reading any new book to your child, I encourage you to look at a book review or scan or read it.
Here are a couple of things to consider for any book:
1) Do you feel the book is an enjoyable read and has themes you can discuss?
2) What does your "gut" tell you? Are you excited to share this new book or do you feel it affronts some value you hold dear?
3) Is your child ready for the themes and content? Does she scare easily or enjoy the thrill of such stories?

My whole family enjoyed the series, but each book IS written to a more mature reader. We generally find when we read a good book, we want to move to the next in the series right away. Because of that, you might want to wait awhile longer.

Good luck,
Parent Coach J. B

I think it totally depends on the temperment of your child. My daughter is 9 and I still don't think she is ready for it. She is very sensitive and although the first book might be ok, the others would be too intense for her and the dark themes may even give her nightmares (or keep her up at night). She is currently tested as being able to read and comprehend books 1 1/2 grade levels above her current grade but that does not mean she wants to read books on that level all the time. I personally think age 5 is too young...there are so many other wonderful books out there that ARE age appropriate there is no reason to rush into Harry Potter. I've always believed that just because you are ABLE to do something doesn't mean you SHOULD do something. Really I've always thought of this as it pertains to academics but I guess it pertains to many other things too, huh? :-) Hope this helps!

harry potter is to intense for he at this time there are things that happen that might scare her.

Hold off on Harry for a while. THey first came out when my son was in 5th grade and he loved them. My girls have both read them in 6th and loved them. My 12 year old just fininshed reading #7 in as many days this week. My 9 year old has seen the first three movies but has not read the books. He too couldn't watch Disney animated features but Pirates, Harry, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings he lives for.
I think LIttel HOuse and the Betsy, Tacy, Tibb books, All of a Kind family, Charlotts' Web, Stuart Little are better for Kinder/1st graders.
Update, I just reread your post. Jack does die in Little Town on the Prairie, I think, one of the later books. I still cry when I read that part.

My ex has read the ENTIRE Harry Potter series to our daughter. They started when she was 5 and finished when she was 7 or 8. (She was totally bored by the Little House books). She has always had a relatively high level of comprehension and vocabulary, but was slow to pick up on reading for herself. I'm glad to say, she is now "above average" in reading and I think a lot of her progress was due to the amount that we have read to her.

You know your daughter. There is no one right age, if your daughter isn't ready for the story or isn't quite at the comprehension level, you will know. The best is to try a book and see how it goes. Kids enjoy being scared, within reason, and emotion is not a bad thing. Just use your judgment.

I love the series, but I would say that she is far too young for Harry Potter. The stories are too long and complex for her to retain the information. Beyond that the imagery can be scary and the vocabulary is not necessarily based on "real words". The content of Little House is generally happy and concrete. The idea of witches, wizards and make-believe monsters may result in sleepless nights!

As a generaly rule, talk with the school or community librarian. They are a wonderful resource. As an educator- third grade at the earliest!

I started to read the books to my son when he was in 2nd grade (7 yrs old), and he couldn't get enough of them. By 3rd grade, he was reading them for himself (and he aced all the Accelerated Reader tests for them). But then my son doesn't scare easily. He's always LOVED dinosaurs and I worried the Jurassic Park movies might give him a fright (he was 4 yrs at the time). Nope - I couldn't have been more wrong. My son was convinced the man eating dinosaurs would be his friends and give him piggy back rides all over town. You know your child best, and if you feel the stories might spook her, then wait till she has a better grasp that stories are make believe and just for fun. There are plenty of other stories to read in the mean time.

It is wonderful that you are having reading time with your daughter! That time is precious. My mother and sister and I had "reading club" long after we were able to read on our own. I would recommend waiting for Harry Potter. There are so many books and series you can read before the Harry Potter series. Especially, since she is still very young. Try the Boxcar children, the Bobbsey Twins, The Littles, all the Betsey books, all the Little House Books, there are American Girl books, Amelia Bedelia, Beverley Cleary books, The Magic Treehouse Books and as she gets older the A to Z Mysteries, Geronimo Stilton (about a cute mouse). I have older children (8 and 10) and we are holding off on the Harry Potter series until maybe this next year. There are so many wonderful children's series. I think children need time to hear children's stories. I know Harry Potter is a great series, but much before the 3rd to 5th grade they really are not comprehending or understanding all of it. We also use to read all the newberry award books, bluebonnet award books, etc. as part of our reading club. We would read the ones that were age appropriate and save the older ones for when we were older.
Books are gift that keeps on giving and sharing your time is the best gift of all! Happy Reading!!

I would not go any further than the first 2 books at this age. They start getting dark at the 3rd one.

My hubs started reading them to my boys when my middle one was this age. They enjoyed it immensely and it was great family time.

My son had to wait till he was 5 almost 6 years old. We had talks about it not being real and he had to understand this. He had no problems with it. But he had wished he could have done the Harry Potter thing so bad when it came out but he was not ready for it then.

The author herself states that each book is written to be age appropriate for children teh same age as Harry is in each book so
Age 10- 1st book
age 11- 2nd book and so on... book 7 is not meant to be read by anyone under 15 years old. The themes are mature and the violence is significant. Hope this helps

These books are meant to be for tweens and early teens. While your daughter might well be able to comprehend them, the topics are not appropriate for a child of her age.

Harry Potter is a GREAT READ for both children and adults. Pure ENTERTAINMENT. All fantasy! It was *THE* book that got my oldest daughter into reading. ... And now, we argue about putting books down to do her chores. (smile)...

HOWEVER, some of the themes may be too mature of a 5 year old. (SPOILER ALERT) Someone dies in every book. And some of the "battle scenes" and villians can be pretty intense.

You should read them first. (I'm SURE you'll enjoy them. I did!) You know your daughter better than anyone. When you think she's mature enough, then you can read it to her. If she's anything like my daughter, she won't let you put it down and she'll end up reading it on her own!

GOOD LUCK!

I had to read the first book when it came out to see if my son should be allowed to read it. "Everyone" was reading it. What I picked up was the serious tone of death, hate, lack of respect and sheer evil. Harry learns to use his own powers in hurtful ways, hardly a good example for children growing up. As a teacher, I didn't like how he treated the teacher who was trying to have them behave in the classroom and on the playground.

The attraction, as in all the Occult, is being special and having power. Those who practice sorcery are portrayed as good and those who don't believe in it or despise it are evil. The author is surprised at the amount of mail she gets from young readers writing to her as if Hogwarts were real, wanting to enter the school in order to become witches and wizards. Teenage girls are showing a lot of interest in witchcraft, with all the shows on TV that show the power witches have. I am not saying that all will delve into witchcraft after reading the books, but I did not want my children to view it in a positive light.

As the series progresses, the author admits that the books get "darker." I was surprised that an author who writes for children would think that was appropriate. I see how people can be caught up her captivating talent of writing, but this is not what I chose for my children to be captivated by.

Being a student of the Bible, I also follow God's directive to avoid witchcraft and the Occult.

It is okay for her to be scared or sad. Part of reading is learning how to associate your feelings with the story.
The content of the books is not as scary as the movies. My daughter started reading them at 6yo. Good luck and happy reading

Good for you reading chapter books to your child. I taught Kindergarten and loved doing chapter books with the kids. Nothing wrong with crying when a part is sad, I would get teary eyed, everytime, when Charlotte dies in Charlottes Web. (Ever read the story book Love You Forever!! Oh my, I cry)
I think Harry Potter would be fine, just temperate your tone while reading the "scarier " parts and always save a little talk time after reading.
Some other chapter books you might consider are Charlie and the Chocalate Factory, The Great Glass Elevator, & The Stupids (its not bad like it sounds) by Roald Dahl. The Junie B Jones books by Barbara Parks are hilarious. The Beverly Cleary books (old school) Beatrice, Henry & Ribsy, & Ramona are awesome. She has some that are even great for the Tweens.
It is awesome that she gets her feelings into a book.