Has anyone really thought about it? Harry Potter redefining the Youtube generation?
Has the last instalment of the series, Harry Potter Book 7, The Deathly Hallows, created quite a stir that cannot be ignored?
Unlawyer-At-Large used to hear litanies from many university professors lamenting that the current generation of young people, which is obsessed with video sharing and posting with Youtube, currently the most popular video hosting website in the world, and spending countless hours online in popular virtual social communities like Myspace, Facebook and Friendster, has lost the art of reading. As in, reading real books reminiscent of the laid-back, good 'ol pre-internet days. As in, reading classics (which a lot of kids consider pretty heavy to read) like those written by Shakespeare. Like those of Ernest Hemingway’s or Mark Twain's.
If figures are of any revealing indication about the inconclusive “lost art of reading,” the final Harry Potter instalment by J.K. Rowling made such a dent that cannot be shrugged away as just another fluke which accidentally seeped into the consciousness of both young people and young-at-heart. The Deathly Hallows, the last and 7th instalment, sold over 10 million copies in its first weekend since its July 21st debut, and still counting. At this writing, all seven books in the blockbuster series have sold a combined 335 million copies worldwide. Yes, that’s right. A staggering 335 million books! That means, about 47 million copies for each of the 7 books, if you divide them equally. If that isn’t a blockbuster in itself, then Unlawyer-At-Large should find a new definition for the word blockbuster outside of Hogwarts!
There are books available out there worthy of leisurely reading, but Harry Potter has enchanted fans from all over the world, from cities like Buenos Aires in Argentina to Berlin in Germany, as well as from Manila, Philippines to Los Angeles, USA. Unlawyer-At-Large makes the observation that the series’ fans are not actually confined to the younger set. Even those in their 30s and 40s have lined up for the books or, conveniently, pre-ordered their copies at popular online sites like Amazon which will deliver worldwide for about US$17.99 per book at its current price.
The debut of The Deathly Hallows also spawned get-together parties, discussions and debates on whether J.K. Rowling really ended the Harry Potter series according to their expectations. People were reveling (yes, jumping up and down like winning the lottery!) with hardbound copies of Book 7 in their hands like there was no tomorrow.
Indeed, for the 7th time, Harry Potter held the entire world, including Unlawyer-At-Large, under his spell.
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