Wild about Harry
Will fans start from the beginning or skip to the last pages to learn the fate of Harry Potter, a.k.a. boy wizard?
The seventh and final book about the adventures of a boy wizard and his friends has created a world-wide Harry Potter mania as fans wait for their very own copy of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows available to the public at 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
(Joe Shuman/For Pioneer Press)
Cook and Fremont Township Public Libraries are serving up everything ala Harry Potter from trivia contests, games and movies -- to an overnight "lock-in" for teenage fans.
The Cook Memorial Public Library District, 413 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville, will host the only Harry Potter Lock-in in Lake County. The event Saturday is limited to 24 teens in grades 7 through 10.
Spaces are filled and there is a waiting list. Lock-In festivities include Harry Potter movies, trivia contest and the creation of yummy chocolate frogs.
"The teens who signed up are besides themselves, counting down the days until the Lock-in," said Teen Librarian Ellen Jennings.
When teens arrive at the Lock-in, Jennings said they will be sorted with a "sorting hat" just like Harry experienced on his first day at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Teens will be sorted into one of four houses: Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. They will then take a solemn vow not to spoil the book's ending.
Anyone breaking the oath will have a jinx placed on their head.
Teens will compete in House Feud (trivia contest), play Fear Factor with Berti Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and search for the Golden Snitch.
Jennings said after the games, the teens will head to the "Potions Room" to learn from the Potions Master the proper way to make chocolate frogs using frog molds.
At 12:01 a.m. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be distributed. Teens can choose to go into four rooms -- a quiet reading room, a listening room that will play the final audiobook, a movie room that will show the movies in order, or a Harry Potter-inspired game room.
Throughout the night, Cook offers kids the opportunity to make ice cream sundaes using toppings like Flobberworms (gummy worms), Gnome Bogies (chocolate chips), Yeti Fur (coconut), Ants (chocolate sprinkles), and Pond Ooze (green ketchup).
At 7 a.m., parents will pick up the teens and Cook Library will return to normal, said Erin Maassen, library spokeswoman.
Fremont Library
Fremont Public Library, 1170 N. Midlothian Road, Mundelein, has a gathering planned for teens from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Friday. Teen Potter fans are invited to compile their best guesses about how Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will end.
Once they get their hands on a copy of the book, many won't be able to put it down, predicted Connie Purcell, a Fremont youth services librarian.
"It's quite literally a page turner. Kids love this series ... there's fantasy, adventure, friendship and growing up. J. K. Rowling has created a whole universe and we can't wait for the next words," Purcell said.
The size of the books doesn't matter to Potter fans.
"They don't care how thick the book -- they are not daunted by the size because they love the story," Purcell said.
Rowling's latter books appeal to students in the middle grades through high school as well as adults.
"There is so much in Harry Potter to attract readers of all ages," Purcell said. "Kids identify with the main characters because they are their age. You have this great story on many levels."
Young readers tend to identify with the children in the series.
"The stories are about kids growing up, finding their place in school whether the school is in Mundelein or Hogwarts. Kids have to find where they fit in school," she said.
"You have the layers of stories about making friends and finding out who your true friends are. And you have story threads about the fantastic adventures -- and the very basic battle between good and evil."