Harry Potter and the Stages of Life

Sigh. I just read over on mugglenet.com that the last Harry Potter book will probably not be released until next year. By this time next year, if all goes according to plan, I should have my Masters and finished at least another novel.

I don't know about anyone else, but I there are some books that I remember as marking certain periods in my life.

My freshman year, I remember sitting out on the Quad at Vassar with my friend Laura and her family for her birthday. Her mother had gotten her a copy of this new book that had apparently been making waves over in the U.K. called "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."

My sophomore year, I procrastinated on declaring my major, by reading "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets."

I don't remember where I was for the third Harry Potter book, but oddly enough, it's probably my favorite of the entire series.

When the fourth book came out, I was working at my first real professional job out of college, at a law firm and becoming increasingly depressed at the thought of working in cubicle farms for the rest of my life. Harry Potter 5 took me into another world.

Harry Potter 6? Two good friends of mine from college got married that weekend. And my maid of honor gave me the copy as a bridal shower gift.

There are other books that I will always remember. When I was 12, Robin McKinely's The Hero and the Crown made me realize that it was ok for girls to go out to kill dragons.

And I stayed up all night, until about 5 a.m., the night before 9/11, unable to put down Guy Gavriel Kay's The Lions of Al-Rassan.

I'm sure there are other books that mark periods of my life, but at the moment, this is what I can remember.

How about you?