Harry Potter on the Brain

I've got Potter-itis.

It's all I can think about.

How did it come back to this?

Why, you may ask?  Harry Potter has been out for ages.  The movies (most of which I haven't seen) are completed and done.  The franchise has been taken over by large corporations--it's come to full fruition.  Or has it?

I have found that many people think the Harry Potter craze our library is currently in is due to the upcoming movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, an extension of the Harry Potter realm (essentially the EU for HP [Star Wars fans will understand the Expanded Universe reference, all others can skip this aside])

I am actually a little surprise at how many people are unaware that an 8th installment of Harry Potter, The Cursed Child, is coming out July 31st!!  Now, this isn't exactly in the same vein as the original series.  This is actually a script based on a short story by J.K. Rowling and is in production in the UK to be performed on stage!  So, while this kind of an epilogue from years down the road after all our heroes left Hogwarts, it's in a different format to keep it fresh, new and interesting.

So, with all of this magic in the air, is it any wonder that the Alamogordo Public Library is hopping on our brooms and waving our wands to conjure up a Harry Potter Extravaganza?!

This is particularly exciting because just as Harry Potter captured the hearts of people of all ages, crossing age boundaries, so is our party!  We are going to have games, crafts, activities, a quidditch match (water quidditch which is going to be a blast in our desert heat), a costume contest and activities for several of the Hogwargs classes.  (I'm doing potions!)

Even my poor family and friends have been shanghaied into helping.  My day off last week was filled with wrangling my daughter, niece, nephew and pretend-nephew into working on wands and a Weasley clockface.  Beyond that my sons were press-ganged into helping with the mirror of Erised and parchment paper-making. My house is a creative wreck, jumbled with crafting areas and scraps and we've been having to eat on the back porch at the patio table because the dining room table is covered with craft detritus.  But, it's all going to be worth it in the end.

Harry Potter Party, here we come!!! (pictures to come)

**Update:  We made the local iNews!  We start at the 7 minute mark for 7-21-16**

http://www.alamoinews.com/ain-show.html