When you’re shopping for gifts, it can help if you know what kind of things the recipient likes. If you’re shopping for a fan of the Harry Potter series of books and movies, you’re in luck! There is a wide range of collectible items and toys based on the stories that will appeal to fans of all ages. Read on for a few ideas on great gifts for Harry Potter fans.
There are a variety of Harry Potter based toys available for kids, and there is none more popular than Lego Harry Potter building sets. The sets are based on locations from the story like Hagrid’s Hut or Hogwarts Castle, or on action scenes like a Quidditch Match. What’s great about the building sets is that even after the model is complete, the fun goes on as kids can play out their favorite scenes and activities from the movie. The sets include mini-figures of the characters allowing for lots of good, fun imaginative play.
Another great collectible item for fans of the story are the Harry Potter wands. This is a fun item for kids and adults who like to collects sets of similar items. Each character from the Harry Potter series has his or her own unique wand. In the story, the wands are made of wood and are imbued with a magical component. Most young wizards receive their wands from Ollivander’s wand shop on Diagon Alley; the collectible wands are made of resin and come in decorative boxes fashioned after the same boxes from Ollivander’s.
There are many other Harry Potter toys and collectible items that make great gifts for any young fan on your gift giving list. Stickers, board and card games, dress up items; there’s sure to be something wonderful for everyone who’s a fan of Harry Potter and his wonderful, magical world.
Growing up I was always an avid reader; whilst the other teenagers were out smoking their first cigarettes or kissing, I spent school break-times in the library. One day I was looking for something new to read, and a slightly weird boy from my class pointed out a book about a young wizard named Harry Potter and said it would be the next big thing. I was skeptical. Then I started to read it and really didn’t rate it at all. I found the writing clumsy and a bit childish. Despite not making it past chapter one, I tagged along to the cinema to watch the first film then went to see the second as a bit of a joke. Before long I was up to date with the movies, and despite not reading any of the books, I was very interested to discover how it was all going to end and borrowed a copy of The Deathly Hallows book from my Potter mad boyfriend at the time. I found, to my joy, that the writing style had changed; it was darker, more grown up, and I powered through the massive novel in a few days.
My initial distrust and now love of Potter has made me wonder if I will ever feel the same way about Twilight; I’ll admit I haven’t read any of the books (although I flicked through the first one at a house party and found the dialogue slightly dull and repetitive; in having the Crucio curse inflicted upon me would be less painful) and I’ve only seen the first film. It failed to hold my attention, and as a result I’ve had no desire to watch the rest. In some ways I am curious; I want to know exactly what it is about a sparkly vampire who steals the engine out of his girlfriend’s car so she can’t go and visit another boy that women of all ages seem to find so sexually appealing. All I’m saying is that if my pasty boyfriend wasn’t up for pre-marital relations, It wouldn’t matter if my car was broken because I’d walk round to the tanned boy with the six pack’s house.
Now I’m not the world’s most romantic person, so perhaps that’s the problem. But what is Harry Potter if not a love story? A beautiful, slow burning love story between Ron and Hermione, with tiny hints dropped here and there in the text; from Hermione’s reaction to Ron’s dalliance with Lavender Brown, to Ron’s jealousy of Harry and Hermione’s friendship (which is represented quite graphically in the film version of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – I was taken aback!).
Another issue I have with Twilight is the plot, or lack thereof. Again, I’ve not read any of the books or seen the films so please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, but from what I can gather it’s simply a story of a boy falling in love with a girl and the story of their relationship from the day they meet until they have a child. The entire story revolves around their love affair. In Harry Potter the characters are embroiled in a battle between good and evil. There are intricate plot details and patterns which JK Rowling introduces in book one and ties up in book six. The books and films grow up with the readership. And of course, there’s the fun of trying to decide which house you would be in based on your personality (I’ve always identified myself as a Slytherin) which is slightly deeper than Team Edward or Team Jacob (ooh which boy is hotter?!).
In the battle of Harry Potter vs. Twilight, Harry Potter is a definite winner as far as I’m concerned. As well as creating a truly engaging story with interesting characters, Jo Rowling also invented a whole new language- any of you muggles up for a spot of quidditch?- and created enough enchanting scenes in her book to inspire a Harry Potter theme park (I’m not sure if I’d be interested in going to a theme park based on small town Washington).
This is of course, only my opinion. Many of my friends really enjoy the Twilight books so I’m sure they have something to offer; only they seem to have nothing to offer me. I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts in the comments.
Jennifer is a part of the digital blogging team at getyourblogsout.com who work with a growing number of entertainment brands. For more information about me, or to keep up to date with the latest in entertainment news, check out my posts at getyourblogsout.com or visit my Twitter account, @BlogsOut
