Reading Harry Potter with a Four-and-a-Half Year-Old

After a few years off we return to Harry Potter. We start off with a bit of catch-up to jog our memories on what happened in the last book, and then we learn that one of us has a lot of faith in the Ministry of Magic. This book (mild spoiler alert) is going to rock him to the core, I can already tell.

And that's a wrap on Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief!

I have a feeling this kid's ability to rattle off lines of prophecy from memory after hearing them only once is going to come in handy in some of the future books we read together...

In which we devise better battle strategies than the God of War and a demigod.

Have you ever been right in the thick of an exciting chapter only to have a stranger knock on your door to let you know your backyard chickens have escaped and are roaming the neighborhood? Well, now we have!

We read this chapter on Christmas Day, so one of us was still riding that Christmas high!

What would you do if you had infinity dollars? Well, you could buy something that cost $350, for starters...

Wait, are you telling me you don't know the difference between an antelope and a Thompson's gazelle? *scandalized*

I always like the stories where brains defeat brawn. 

When you end up reading four chapters in one sitting at bedtime, you get a little loopy by the time you get to that last chapter.

If you don't know what they look like, go ahead and do an image search for echidnas now. It'll save you having to do it later!

We ended up reading four chapters (!) this bedtime. This is the second.

Do you know who Auntie M. is? Because we have some guesses! Actually, we just have one guess, but we guess it often.

A lot of exciting action in this one, and I'm not just talking about the demonstration of musk ox headbutting techniques!

Some technical difficulties in this one! But don't worry, you won't be able to tell where they... *puts finger to earpiece* this just in, you WILL be able to tell where the technical difficulties occur. Apologies in advance!

Do you know how to pronounce Hephaestus? Me neither.

I'm pretty sure he prefers the illustrated editions so he can get spoilers from the pictures.

There's a great two-page illustration of all of the Camp Half-Blood cabins, so we have to stop and examine it regularly as we read.

This chapter includes a map of the camp, which we spent a good chunk of time looking at and discussing. So, sorry in advance to those of you who don't have a big map of the camp to look at. 

This is the last chapter we had to re-read: after this we're back into those first-time-around reactions!

Listenin' and Legos, Legos and listenin'. 

We read the whole book over about two weeks in December, but when I went back to check the recordings I found that chapters 2, 3, and 4 did not record for some reason. So these next three chapters are from the second time through reading (in case you notice that he suddenly knows what's going to happen later in the book). 

So we're reading the first book of a new book series, and thought you might be interested in joining us!

While visiting his grandparents he found Aunt Tori's copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, so he brought it home so we could read it together (thanks, Tori!). 

For those who may not know, Beedle the Bard penned many popular wizarding world fairy tales, much like the Brothers Grimm did for Muggles. One of his stories plays a pivotal role in a later Harry Potter book. 

As a quick aside, if I ever had a podcast that wasn't this it would probably be called "A Quick Aside."

Bringing it on home.

We recorded this way back in February, just as schools were starting to close due to coronavirus and the idea of kindergarten-via-Zoom was still new and novel. What lives we've lived since then.

Have you ever wanted to spend 15 minutes talking through the events of a momentous Harry Potter chapter with a kindergartner while they lie in bed after reading said chapter? Well, now you can live the dream vicariously through us! 

(Note: we read this chapter four months ago, before the coronavirus self-quarantining began, which is why my wife is out of the house at bedtime, helping friends who have a newborn. Listening to that detail now, months into social distancing, was jarring for me! Hey, remember when you could just go to a friend's house and hold their newborn baby all night so they could get some sleep, and it was no big deal?)

In which we have SO MANY THEORIES about what the heck is happening here.

Short, but thrilling!

This chapter is so much fun.

“Never make fun of someone if they mispronounce a word. It means they learned it by reading” - Anonymous

We had a sieve in our kitchen when I was growing up, but we called it a strainer. I only knew the word from reading, and in my head it rhymed with "receive." I'm afraid I've taken the first steps toward passing that mispronunciation on to my children.

Having is a kid means sometimes having to explain concepts like "blackmail" on the spot, very poorly. 

We ended this one well after bedtime,  but we still had a long and great conversation after I stopped recording. I'm sorry you couldn't hear it, but just know the wheels are turning in his head. He's really trying to figure this one out.

Seriously, this whole mystery of Mr. Crouch being "sick" is extremely suspicious. 

Do you remember how Professor Snape brought Harry to the Hospital Wing after he was almost killed by dementors in the last book? Well, five points to your House if you did! I did not immediately remember that, as you'll hear. 

Our conversation at the end of this chapter does include a minor spoiler, just FYI. 

We have a minor digression midway through the chapter as we try to solve some of the mysteries in the book. Who fired off that Dark Mark at the Quidditch World Cup, anyway?

In which I sidestep the conversation about the appropriateness of students going to the Yule Ball with teachers. To be honest, the whole concept of finding a date went over his head, but hey, he's only six.

WANGOBALLWIME?

In which we shake our fists skyward at the continued presence of Rita Skeeter and debate the likelihood of the second task involving a singing, showering prefect.

We were so excited to read about the first task we started our discussion during bathtime. 

The recording cuts off before we identify the Harry and the Potters song that mentions the Hungarian Horntail, but don't worry, we do remember that it's The Yule Ball, off their first album. 

Alright, real quick, I want to address the periodic crying baby in the background of many of these chapters: we've been reading mostly at bedtime lately, which is also the baby's bedtime, and once the baby realizes we're getting him ready for bed he protests loudly. Sorry! It's an honest little slice of life from our day, but I know it doesn't make for the most enjoyable listening experience for everyone.

Sometimes you really have to get into character if you want your Dumbledore voice to be believable. 

In which a song by the band Harry and the Potters spoils one of the big surprises in the book. It won't be the last time, I'm sure.

Thanks to the holidays and associated travels we took a little over a month off from Harry Potter, so it was great to get back in the saddle.

Last year we received a note from his preschool teacher indicating that he was tested as having the vocabulary of an eight-year-old, and I 100% credit Harry Potter for that--how many other kindergarteners know what "constant vigilance" means? (Also, this week and last week there were some severe audio issues with the recording. Sorry! Next episode will be back to normal!)

Thanks to a recording issue sound quality is a little bit off on this one, but the quality content is dead on.