Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince

I haven't decided whether I should be excited or not.  Nevertheless, coming this November, the sixth movie installment of Harry Potter based on the book series by J.K. Rowling will appear in theaters.  I will say to all of you skeptics out there, that I stayed away from Harry Potter when it initially hit the scene.  I wasn't a big recreational reader at the time, and all the fuss about it teaching children about witchcraft and sorcery was enough for me to just stay away.  But as I grew older, I not only began to think a little bit for myself, but also became a more recreational reader.  Put the two together, and I really needed a good book series.  A good friend of mine, Day Smith, was a big Harry Potter fan.  She so sweetly agreed to be a bridesmaid in my wedding BEFORE she found out that the final book, The Deathly Hallows, would come out that very day.  Anyways, all of the excitement got me interested.  I got to thinking, I am a grown woman who is very founded in her beliefs, a children's book is not going to shake me up!  So I began reading, and I was immediately addicted.  J.K. Rowling has such a talent for developing characters and plot and setting and weaving it all together into this unpredictable web of a story.  Let's be honest with ourselves...how many times have you read a book and NOT been able to predict the ending of it by the time you got there?  Aside from the classics, I myself have not read many.  But she NEVER ceased to astonish me with her twists and turns.  Not to mention the way she made me HATE certain characters and LOVE others.  I laughed out loud, I cried real tears, I found myself actually CARING about these FICTIONAL characters.  I can say that I have never read a book that had me so involved in its story.  Lucky for me, all of the books were out when I started reading, so I read them all back to back in about 1 month!  I definitely have a new favorite author and series.  And as for the mumbo jumbo about being unsuitable for children based on the witchcraft and wizardy...that is hogwash.  The only reason I would say it is unsuitable for young children is because there is a level of violence in it that might scare children.  The book is CLEARLY fictional...and very good fiction at that.  So after I read these fascinating books, I was thrilled to find out that there were movies to go along with them.  I borrowed all 5 that were out at the time from my cousin Neil.  Then I forced Michael to watch them with me.  I wanted him to understand why I was so obsessed with reading these books.  I wanted him to enjoy the story and love the characters I loved and despise those that I despised.  Well...the movies did NOT help me meet my goal.  They were okay.  But so much of the plot is left out!  There are just some things that cannot be conveyed on a movie screen. THIS brings me to the reason I am wary of getting excited about the Half-Blood Prince coming out in November.  I do think that the movies have gotten increasingly better with each one, so maybe this one will shock and amaze even the truest Harry Potter fan.  I still think the only way to truly appreciate and understand this story completely is to read the books!  I am begging Michael to do so.  First I have to purchase my own copy!  (if anyone needs to get me a present for anything...hint hint)  Enough rambling.  You can watch the movie trailer here.