# Should I get my 6-year-old a Harry Potter book for Xmas? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 19, 2008, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973 "2008-12-19T20:52:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/21 "2008-12-21T00:56:16Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I have a girl in my class who, at 7, is whipping through the books; in about a month, she’s made it through the first four. It may be too much for a six-year-old, but it may not. > > My objection would be that I just don’t think they’re all that awesome. > > Daniel Wow ! At six years of age, 1956, my class and I were reading Dick and Jane, learning colours and counting to one hundred. See Spot run. It wasn’t till grade 4 when we started to read the Hardy boys. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/22 "2008-12-21T01:01:37Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/23 "2008-12-21T01:16:56Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I have a girl in my class who, at 7, is whipping through the books; in about a month, she’s made it through the first four. It may be too much for a six-year-old, but it may not. I have a hard time believing this. I’ve taught a lot of 7 year olds. Not even the brightest of the brightest were whipping through 4 Harry Potter sized novels in a month. Not by themselves anyway. Not even my daughter, who was reading at a post-high school graduate level when she was 8. By what means are you able to verify that this child is actually reading through these books unassisted, and not just watching the movies or skimming them or something? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/24 "2008-12-21T01:20:49Z")
I would say yes. Your six year old will probably want a library card soon. I think that is a good thing. There is nothing in the first 3 books that I would not let a 6 year old read. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/25 "2008-12-21T02:14:52Z")
Yes, go for it. From fairy tales to Goosebumps, (most) kids like scary stuff. (I can’t stand Goosebumps, btw, but if my kids had liked them, I’d have borne it). HP is really no scarier than Wizard of Oz or Wolves of Willoughby Chase or similar. Sure the books get darker, but they’re always told from a kid’s perspective. HP is not YA (young adult) stuff–it’s childhood fantasy. The darker stuff may go over his head, for all we know. (or it may terrify him into therapy, but I doubt it). I don’t think they’re inappropriate for 6 or 7, certainly not for 8 and up. All that said, you may prefer to read HP aloud to him. They’re fun to read aloud and then you’re there, just in case (said because I was terrified of the flying monkeys in the film Wizard of Oz, but the book didn’t bother me). Rowling does indeed owe huge debts to many authors. Nesbit is good and Tolkien (but that is too hard for a 6 year old–not the storyline of The Hobbit, but the language and long, complex sentences). But there is no crying urgency to start him off on HP, unless you want to. What does he like to read? ---
**Author:** ![CAT\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@CAT\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CAT_1)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/26 "2008-12-21T02:54:56Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > I have a hard time believing this. I’ve taught a lot of 7 year olds. Not even the brightest of the brightest were whipping through 4 Harry Potter sized novels in a month. Not by themselves anyway. Not even my daughter, who was reading at a post-high school graduate level when she was 8. By what means are you able to verify that this child is actually reading through these books unassisted, and not just watching the movies or skimming them or something? I know you weren’t asking me but I also mentioned a girl who was reading them at age 7. I was her nanny for 10 years. How did I know she was really reading them? #1 She read them aloud quite often, so her little brother could hear the story too. #2. She would constantly bombard me with questions and facts from the book, until I wanted to pull my hair out. I would be driving her to school, or swimming lessons, and the whole ride was HP trivia. #3 She had never watched any TV or been to a movie until she was about 8 or 9, so I know she wasn’t getting the information anywhere else. #4. Once she read a book she would start right over, and read it again. Sometimes she would read a whole book in 2 or 3 days. I am no slouch at reading, and we were reading the same book once, started on the same page, and she was 40 pages ahead of me an hour later. I think she was 8 then. She is very bright and so is her brother. But besides those two I knew a couple other kids in her school who were reading at that level by age 7 as well. They went to a private school with only about 100 total students. I am sure it is pretty rare, but it is possible. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/27 "2008-12-21T04:35:01Z")
I’d say it’s not a matter of age, but rather of personality. I was exposed to books and movies far far above by age level growing up, and anything I didn’t understand just didn’t register - no harm. But some people, of any age, will either A) be sensitive to certain things like violence or ‘heavy’ themes or B) become obsessive about random things. Those people might need more careful handling with regard to the materials they are exposed to. Has your kid had any problems with other materials? ---
**Author:** ![lilflower](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecccb3/32.png) [@lilflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lilflower)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/28 "2008-12-21T17:40:05Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > But there is no crying urgency to start him off on HP, unless you want to. What does he like to read? He did read a few Goosebumps books but he finished those books almost before getting home from the bookstore! I wouldn’t say he has any special interest just yet and so I am trying to expose him to lots of interesting and challenging books. I’ve been buying him what I would call “classics” like Peter Pan and Treasure Island. What I like about these is that they seem to be interesting to a young boy and it takes him more than a day to read them. He really likes the Hardy Boys series (although I did have to explain to him what a drug smuggler is!) and he really likes Alice in Wonderland. I don’t know that fantasy fiction is what he would really like but when I look at the books at his reading level (at least, the young adult section at our local Books-a-Million), that seems to be the overwhelming majority. He also really liked the Lemony Snicket series (but he’s read all of those). I do think he enjoys series’ which makes me think he wants to read more about the characters that are carried throughout the books. The only reason I brought up Harry Potter is because others have suggested it. I suppose it does seem an easy choice. Some of you have mentioned other great writers that he might like. I am definitely open to suggestions. Thanks so much for all the responses. I am looking forward to going to book store to pick out some good presents! ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/29 "2008-12-21T17:42:05Z")
I’d suggest EB White and the Narnia books in addition to HP. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/30 "2008-12-21T19:23:20Z")
Ok, if he can read _Treasure Island_ and not have nightmares, he can handle Harry Potter–all the way to book 7. Enjoy! You might also want to try the Little House books (_Farmer Boy_, if nothing else appeals), _The Phantom Tollbooth_ by Norton Juster is also a classic. I have not read this, but the Spiderwick Chronicles are well thought of. And there is the Redwall series. An animal kingdom, replete with honor, battles and bravery–my boys loved those books. Start at the beginning (have forgotten the title, maybe Wikipedia it), but they can be read out of order as well. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/31 "2008-12-21T19:42:22Z")
I first read _The Hobbit_ when I was about 8. That’s worth a try. ---
**Author:** ![wunderkammer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ed8c4c/32.png) [@wunderkammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wunderkammer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2008, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/32 "2008-12-21T19:43:19Z")
I’d also suggest anything by Roald Dahl, if he’s into Lemony Snicket books. I was a huge Dahl fan when I was a kid, and the only reason I got into Harry Potter was that I had recently finished reading all of Dahl’s stuff when the first HP came out, and the comic exaggeration (living in a cupboard under the stairs, the horrendous Dursleys, &c.) and very British setting were attractive at the time. I didn’t find it very compelling after the first few chapters, though, and would have preferred for old Roald to be resurrected and write again. Seconding or thirding The Phantom Tollbooth, too. I’ve always loved it, and it seems like a very Doper book. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2008, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/33 "2008-12-22T03:34:05Z")
Thinking some more about it, most of my reading as a child was self directed. I would pick books that the kids has actually shown an interest in, or are very similar to ones already read and enjoyed. ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2008, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973/34 "2008-12-22T04:30:18Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I have a girl in my class who, at 7, is whipping through the books; in about a month, she’s made it through the first four.l :dubious: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-get-my-6-year-old-a-harry-potter-book-for-xmas/477973.md?page=1)