HELP! Any fellow parents of young Potter fans out there....

[stbjohn2]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "lavaluvn" <lavaluvn at y...> 
wrote:
> 
> HI everyone, I have a bit of a dilemma.  My six-year-old daughter 
> has gone and become a Harry Potter fanatic, which naturally 
thrilled 
> me at first.  I've really enjoyed reading the books out loud to 
> her.  My problem is that we've just reached the last part of GOF 
and 
> Cedric is going to die (tomorrow night, yikes!) and OOTP lurks in 
> the near future.  Has anyone else out there read Books 4 or 5 to 
> their young children?  I'm tempted to put off OOTP indefinitely, if 
> I can get away with it.  I've done a little judicious editing of 
> language now and then, but not cut much out, and now I don't know 
> what to do with the heavy stuff that's coming.
> 
> Anyone have any ideas, recommendations, anecdotes that might 
help...?
> 
> Thanks much!
> 
> Andromeda

I started this by typing lots of personal anecdotes, but the truth 
is, every kid is so different. I think you just need to go with your 
instincts. If your children are sensitive, gloss over the yucky parts.
I read GOF to my son when he was 7 and he did fine with it. We read 
OOTP last summer (he was 8), and frankly, I think he was bored with a 
lot of it; he spent the first 3rd of the book asking "But when's 
Harry going to get to Hogwarts". I've discouraged him from reading it 
to himself, even though he has read the other four, just because it 
seems so much more adult than the others (though I started to feel 
that way with book 3).  I would try to put off reading OOTP to 
children as young as yours, because of the boredom factor if nothing 
else.
Good luck
Sandy