To say no to the 6th Harry Potter book...

[TabbyTigger]

DD is 5. She’s just finished the first five Harry Potter books and, obviously, now wants to move onto the 6th. However from what I and other DCs remember, this one has more mature themes (romance/more detailed deaths) and is generally more complex. AIBU to ask her to wait a year or so before reading it or should I let her try and see how she does?

TheKimJong you’re giving me flashbacks to my scary university tutor!!! Starting to wonder if you’re her...

And there you go again.

Oh my newborn reading Dickens? They're bright but hardly gifted.

wurlie what are you cross about now? I don’t see what you want me to say. I can’t undo letting her read books 1-5, but I am postponing her reading of books 6-7.

Of course it could be argued that a truly exceptional child would recognise that they can't comprehend the whole text and would therefore prefer to read something more age appropriate.

Those who can read all the words at 5 but won't realise until they're 10 just how much went over their head? Distinctly average.

I haven't rtft but my ds has read them all and he's 8 he said he wasn't scared by any of them

it's really miserable to be an advanced reader, or a person with academic interests and abilities, and be on the receiving end of eye rolling, disbelief, projection that you somehow think you're better than others, etc etc

God yes.

I was an advanced reader, probably not dissimilar to the OPs kids. I learned very early on to hide what is was reading and lie about it.

Maybe the posters getting all defensive just have thick kids

wurlie really not sure what you want from me at this point... she’s just a normal kid who’s good at cartwheels and whose mother is apparently totally abusive for allowing her to read Harry Potter.

Also glad to hear I’m average too, because I don’t understand everything I read and still manage to appreciate it. Looks like my lit degree was a waste of time

Ugh. Haven't rtft but I cringe at the smugness on this thread. 5 year old reading OBVIOUSLY age inappropriate books. The casual reference to tutorials at university. Nobody cares.

Youcan't really rely on reading age data. One of the issues is that with the introduction of better teaching of reading is that the bell curve has totally shifted to the left and I don't think the tests have been adjusted to deal with that. So you end up with a significant proportion of yr 1&2 children maxing out the tests.

I'd be very surprised if only1/1000 children were reading books 5-6 years their chronological age in KS1.

If she is capable of reading Harry Potter at age 5 , she is capable of reading other stories which are better written than the inane grammatical constructions of JK Rowling. She is a terrible writer, which is probably why the first books were turned down by about 20 publishers.

Well, yes, I’m very proud that I got to university given my childhood circumstances, so I’m aware I talk about it a lot. Not an intentional brag, but probably a subconscious one. Sorry that bothers you.

I’m not smug about my kid reading a few Harry Potter books though. I don’t think it’s a big deal.

5 or even 6 sounds too young for any Harry Potter books. I am amazed that a 5 nearly 6 year old could read them properly.
The books were originally aimed at older children. 5 is definitely too young for the 6th book

And to counter the accusation of having thick kids, my ds read The Philosopher's Stone in year 1. He was old for the year though, so definitely 6. He was considered a advanced reader at the time.

and whose mother is apparently totally abusive for allowing her to read Harry Potter.

I think you're deluded, not abusive.

Hi OP,
Speaking here as someone who loves the Harry Potter books and first read them when I was a similar age to your DD - i.e. in Year 1 (the last two a little later as they weren't out then).
I read them as a mixture of my parents reading them to me and reading myself - I definitely could read them (apart from a few of the trickier words) and comprehended what was going on, apart from some underlying themes.
I absolutely fell in love with the series from the first book. I know for sure there were bits that probably went over my head (some of the more romantic/darker themes) but that didn't detract from my enjoyment. When I re-read the series (a fair few times!) when I was older, I understood/realised things that I hadn't previously, but if I'm honest that just made them an equally interesting read the second time through.
You've completely ruined the Harry Potter series for you DD by letting her read them too young So I completely disagree with this point as I thoroughly enjoyed them when I was six, and continued to as I got older: reading them early just gave me extra years of enjoyment! I can honestly say I was never disturbed by any of the themes, and where there were upsetting parts I talked through them with my parents.
I read the 6th book when it came out (at around 7/8 I think) and my parents read it first and discussed things with me afterwards.
So I just wanted to say I think YANBU to make her wait a bit because especially in 6+ they do get darker, but you're also not being unreasonable to let her read the series because she has obviously enjoyed them, and I think it really is dependent on a child if they'll enjoy them/comprehend them.

OP - I think you’ve had an unn ccessarily hard time on here. FWIW I think your instinct about saving 6 &7 until she’s older is right. For a bright, imaginative, curious child (which your DD obviously is) I think some of the imagery would be quite frightening.

Ugh. Haven't rtft but I cringe at the smugness on this thread. 5 year old reading OBVIOUSLY age inappropriate books. The casual reference to tutorials at university. Nobody cares

So you haven’t read the thread, read enough to sneer at and care enough to comment...

Also, I agree with Striped Giraffe - you won’t have ruined the books at all. Of course she won’t have understand everything in the books but the characters and world have obviously captivated her - that will make her want to return and reread them when she’s older and she’ll get more deeper meaning from them then (that’s exactly why abridged versions of more difficult kids’ classics are available)

@DammitOedipus

I teach primary. There is a difference between reading and understanding, and a 5-year-old does not have the ability to read and understand the Harry Potter books on their own. High level year 1 students are only just starting books without supporting images, let alone books filled with metaphors and mature themes like angst. I highly doubt any teacher would support a child reading books well beyond their level of comprehension

I'm sorry, after that statement, I really can't believe you're a teacher. Your high level Year 1s really can't be that high a level, if you really are a teacher. Also, Harry Potter is not beyond all children's comprehension. If you were really a teacher, you'd know this.

I'm sure I have a video somewhere of my 4 year old DS reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. He understood the main aspects of the story and is still obsessed with Potter at 10. He's seen all the films multiple times, read the first four books over and over (and is chuffed I've finally let him start OOTP) and we've been to the Studio Tour seventeen times. It's his favourite place in the world. I can assure you that reading the first three books at 4-5 has not spoiled them for him.

Also, to the above poster who said JK is a terrible writer - clearly. A billionaire with multiple books, plays, movies and a whole section of Universal Theme parks, billions of obsessive fans all over the world, masses of merchandise and much more. Clearly she's so awful