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2003-02-12 --- 21:18

Pottering About Wid DaBoy

A few years back, when my soon to be five-years, seven-months-old son and yer diarist were visiting one of his wonderful sisters around a holiday�DatSaucePerson was shocked to find that his then five and eight year-old nieces had never heard of Harry Potter.

Leap Backward A Bit And:

A few years previous to that, DaSauce was on one of his then regular visits to DaMidlands of DatU.K. place and bored.

He wandered about, and found a bookshop (having already read the three or four he had lugged. Buying another three books put the whole world right. The first one of those three that he read destroyed any joy he might have had from the next two� It was a hardcover 1st edition (signed as bought from the store as she had done a signing there in the previous week) from some new children�s author named Rowling�and it was something about a philosopher�s stone.

Returning to the then digs in the South Coast O� Da Bay Area, YerSauce had already reread the book, and loaned it to his then happily-married, and pre-child, and pre-strokes wife. After she had enjoyed it fully, he loaned it to the neighbors� That whole family plowed through it, and loaned it to some pals, and so on, until the book was lost.

Today that first is worth a few gold-galleons in PotterLand, but DaSauce is only unhappy that he doesn�t have it as a signed-first. The issue is not about DaBucks as great first editions (strangely) have no fiscal value to DisGuy but rather are more like friends and family members�and you JUST don�t sell YOUR FAMILY.

Anyway, back to the vacation at DaLittlestSister�s�.

So, the nieces had never heard of Potter.

Outraged your Clear-and-Present-Book-Pimp ran to the nearest seller of such and bought the first two (three were out then.)

He then made it his job for the next week-and-change to read the bedtime stories to DaNieces� and was powering through the US Version of Philosopher�s Stone (Sorcerer�s Stone) at a chapter a night.

They never got any further.

DerSauce loves his sisters. We do have different priorities, through.

In the process DaKiddo (who was curled up next to his cousins as they got their bedtime story each evening) became enamored with the IDEA of hearing Harry Potter�Book One.

We have since restarted the first few chapters of that book at least seven times.

DatSauceLikeKnucklehead is of the opinion that his son doesn�t get to watch a film adaptation of an important book without first having heard the book (and eventually without first having read it.) Hard-ass? Maybe. Refusing to have imagination stilted by spoon-feeding of visions? Absolutely.

DaSauce had seen the first film as his son was not old enough to attend, and a number of months later the DVD flavor came out. It has never been watched. It just sits atop silly-numbers of shelved movies around DaSauce'sHovel and gathers dust (all the while taunting DaBoy.)

When the DVD arrived, there were several false starts on the book.

[These are never initiated by your diarist, but always by his son. A son who is smart and polite for his age, but sheesh� those first few chapters while a great intro�aren�t exactly preschool fodder.]

Around the time of the second film�s imminent release DaSauceOfWhackySelfInflictedRules was asked to restart the book a couple of times� and again, DaBoy couldn�t really pay attention for longer than a half chapter and the interest failed within two or so of these.

But the IDEA still taunts him. One of our monthly or so favorite early morning weekend runs is the bookstore� he gets books and his dad gets books and his pop drinks coffee, and DatBoy drinks juice, and all is good.

These days each Children�s section of a store has a whole Potter-Region. And DatKiddo can read a bit. And he comes running up to his pop with the first Harry Book in hand in audio form.

�DAD! A Harry Potter and d�saucereres-stoned CD!� His father (dats Me!) flinches at the price (40 Clams Plus For Seven Discs Unabridged.)

�Is it music?� asks Daboy.

�Er, no pal, that is someone reading the book recorded in a studio.�

�Could we get it, Dad? Could we?�

[Thinking here. If it actually gets listened to together, it might solve the whole ongoing start and restart thing. Maybe...

Hrm. Maybe--as the guy who does the voice is really good according to the press and was REALLY fun in an NPR interview�.

Maybe the various characterizations and the British accent will enthrall him.]

�We might.� [Sez I.}

�Well? [Sez DaBoy.]

�Tell you what, buddy-boy. If you absolutely pinky promise that you�ll listen and not play whether we are in the car or at home and we can listen to at least one chapter at a time together� Sure.�

�I WILL! I WILL!� [And out comes his left pinky.]

So we made our pinky promise. And didn�t have enough off our plate until this afternoon�s pickup from his school to actually start.

Jim Dale does the reading� and just saying the word reading is like saying that MC Escher did some woodcarving. This guy is spectacular. YerSauce almost forgives him for penning the tune Georgie Girl.

We nailed the first chapter and a half in the auto on the way home.

By his (half an hour late!) bedtime we had listened to the first two CD�s (this is about 148 minutes of voice.). We listened through dinner� He was up and acting out the parts� Stomping around as Hagrid, trying to look fat as Dudley, waving his wand about as Harry. It was astonishing.

DaSauce warned him that he didn�t need bedtime problems as DatKid had been up very late listening to the end of the second CD, and if he hoped to be able to listen to number three tomorrow� and he was as silent as a rock on his way to sleep.

At this rate we may be able to watch the movie this weekend. And I am certain that book two will be bought in audio form.

Sheesh. Yer Diarist never did see the second film, and may actually be able to watch it when it releases on DVD. [It didn�t seem right to get a sitter to go watch a movie that he would be able to see if not for DemRules�and DaSauce�s inability to hold his interest in the 1st book no matter how much fun he made it.]

--HappyAsDaProverbialPigInPotterSauce

~*~
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