I was fortunate enough to attend a reading by J.K. Rowling. It was a great experience, one I will remember for a long time. When I arrived at the show, I couldn't ignore the mood of the crowd. It was electric. As the crowd's excitement filled the arena, I noticed lots of people had come dressed in wizard attire. Feeling a little out of place in my regular clothes, I waited anxiously for the show to start.
The reading began shortly after 7 pm. After a brief introduction J.K. walked on stage. The small attractive blond woman, was greeted by a tremendous wave of applause. She thanked us and immediately began to read from the fourth Harry Potter, The Goblet of Fire. She read part of Chapter 12 "Mad Eye Moody." Rowling did wonderful justice to the voices of Professor Trelawney, Draco Malfoy and Mad Eye Moody. Although she didn't read for as long as I hoped, I was impressed with what she did. After finishing the chapter she accepted questions from the audience - not a small task, there were 4000 of us in attendance. Rowling answered questions for the rest of the show. It was great to hear what she had to say. Here are a few things that she revealed in her answers about herself and Harry.
J.K. Rowling is cool. She is really cool. Prior to hearing her read, I didn't think I would like her as much as I did. People have criticized Rowling in the past for not being a good public speaker, but I thought she was great. My only complaint was that the show was short, only about an hour. When it was over, I couldn't believe how quickly it had gone and I wanted more.
