Anonymous wrote:JK specifically said she wrote/published the books in the time she wanted younger kids to read and grow up with them.

Here is a great timeline. Don't rush thru them. Let your kids mature with the kids in the books.

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/harry-potter-age-by-age-guide#

My kids rushed through the books at first the same way I know I rushed to read all of a favorite series. Most of my kids have reread the entire series multiple times by now, and I think they enjoy it differently as they grow up and understand more of what they were reading.

At first it was a fun adventure story, then it inspired some questions and further thought, and in high school one of my DDs cited the book in an academic research paper that was well-received by the teacher for a respectable grade.

I never bothered limiting my children's reading material, under the assumption that they'd read what they liked, absorb what they were ready for and gloss over the rest like I did, and put down any book that was unenjoyable for any reason including being too boring, confusing, tedious to read, or distressing.

I agree that younger readers don't understand all the themes or catch the true complexity of the series, I just disagree that this suggests they shouldn't read all the books if they are interested enough to want to do so.

JK specifically said she wrote/published the books in the time she wanted younger kids to read and grow up with them.

Here is a great timeline. Don't rush thru them. Let your kids mature with the kids in the books.

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/harry-potter-age-by-age-guide#

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My seven year old read the entire series a few months ago, and is rereading them now. He didn't seem particularly perturbed by the dark elements in the book (he's seen the films too and seemed to be fine).

You let your 7yr old watch PG-13 movies? Will he be watching R movies at 10?

NP here. Those movies are fine for a seven year old. Let me guess, your kid was scared during "Finding Dory". Some of us don't treat second graders like toddlers.

No, you treat them like teenagers. Pushing them thru childhood as fast as you can.

I agree 7yr old's should not be watching violent pg-13 movies.

Anonymous wrote:I read them out loud to my 7 year old. Since I was reading to him, we were able to stop and talk as necessary, but he wasn't particularly bothered or scared.

Same here. And DS (now 8) is re-reading them himself. He handled the darker themes better than I expected - was very matter of fact about why bad things happened and how the characters were working to overcome them.

But as other PPs have said, YMMV. It really depends on your child. I don't think I could have handled the later books' themes at 7 or 8.

My 7 year-old wasn't upset until book 7, which she has now been reading for months. She devoured the other books, but keeps setting this one aside, which demonstrates that it is just too mature.

Not necessarily in content, but definitely in motivations. I think you need a certain maturity to understand the emotions and dynamics at play in book 7.

You know your child best, OP. Also know that there is no linear progression in a child's capacity to handle "heavy fare". It can develop in spurts, and can even retrograde. Just be sensitive to your child's phases.

I forced my 7 year old to take a break when he reached book 5, because I was concerned too, but when I saw he was reading adult books about World War II instead, I gave him back the HP series, which suddenly seemed a lot more innocent... He saw all the movies with little sister at the same age and neither were bothered.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My seven year old read the entire series a few months ago, and is rereading them now. He didn't seem particularly perturbed by the dark elements in the book (he's seen the films too and seemed to be fine).

You let your 7yr old watch PG-13 movies? Will he be watching R movies at 10?

NP here. Those movies are fine for a seven year old. Let me guess, your kid was scared during "Finding Dory". Some of us don't treat second graders like toddlers.

Anonymous wrote:My seven year old read the entire series a few months ago, and is rereading them now. He didn't seem particularly perturbed by the dark elements in the book (he's seen the films too and seemed to be fine).

You let your 7yr old watch PG-13 movies? Will he be watching R movies at 10?

My seven year old read the entire series a few months ago, and is rereading them now. He didn't seem particularly perturbed by the dark elements in the book (he's seen the films too and seemed to be fine).

No. I actually was reading behind him, so we could discuss, so I did not realize what was in them until to late. But he was fine. And this is a kid who at the time could barely watch pg movies without getting upset. But he feels more in control when he reads, so he does not get upset as much. So I think this is one of those it depends on the kid kind of thing.

I do think it is good to have an adult who knows what is in the books to talk about it.

I read them out loud to my 7 year old. Since I was reading to him, we were able to stop and talk as necessary, but he wasn't particularly bothered or scared.

Our son, now 10, was fine with all the books--and he read them when he was way too young (and again later, and once again at 10). our daughter, 8, stopped herself in the middle of book 4 after racing through 1-3. I guess my inclination is to let them pace themselves.

DD was fine with the whole series.

She read books 1-3 right around her 8th birthday, and absolutely loved them. Some of her friends kept going, but we had her stop for awhile and read some other things instead. She picked back up with the rest of HP a few months later and finished the series without a problem. She's since re-read many of the books, too. Absolutely loves them!

That said, she's only watched the first three movies. As she said, "I can't imagine in my head anything too scary, so the books are ok. But the movies may get scarier than I want to see." Makes sense!

My 9yo daughter is currently in the middle of book 4. She raced through 1-3, started #4 and then ended up putting it aside b/c she said it was getting too scary. This was a month or so ago. She's now picked it up again and is poring though it. So, I basically just let her be the judge of whether it's too scary or not for her personally.

My almost 9 year old wants to finish up the Harry Potter series but I'm concerned those last two books are too heavy for him right now. (I've read them). If your DC has read them, how did they do with them? Did you talk through the heavier/darker themes that in these books than in the previous ones? Or are having your kids wait to read until they're older? Thanks