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. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

And that's a wrap on Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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... --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

In which we devise better battle strategies than the God of War and a demigod. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

We read this chapter on Christmas Day, so one of us was still riding that Christmas high! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

What would you do if you had infinity dollars? Well, you could buy something that cost $350, for starters... --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

Wait, are you telling me you don't know the difference between an antelope and a Thompson's gazelle? *scandalized* --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

I always like the stories where brains defeat brawn. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

We ended up reading four chapters (!) this bedtime. This is the second. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

Do you know who Auntie M. is? Because we have some guesses! Actually, we just have one guess, but we guess it often. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

A lot of exciting action in this one, and I'm not just talking about the demonstration of musk ox headbutting techniques! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

Do you know how to pronounce Hephaestus? Me neither. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

I'm pretty sure he prefers the illustrated editions so he can get spoilers from the pictures. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

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. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support

This is the last chapter we had to re-read: after this we're back into those first-time-around reactions! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/reading-harry-potter0/support