Harry Potter Series
I'm not a teenager, not by a long shot. And I do not like anything that every body else like - Harry Potter-mania definitively was putting me off from reading Harry Potter for a long time. And let's face it - nobody likes anybody who gets too successful (hence the plagiarism court cases against J.K.Rowling). But, having seen the Harry Potter books in my local library once, in Polish, and having not read anything in Polish for a long time, I decided to give it ago. I wanted to see what all the fuss was all about.
Gosh, was I hooked or what, I could hardly put the book(s) down. Forget children, hubby, dinner, house-work. Nothing existed anymore except for Harry's world.
Having read in all in Polish, I then missed it so much, I read it all again in English.
And only then I decided to watch the movies. I would recommend that is the best way to go - the movies do not reflect the books and you will be missing lots of vital details of the story if you have not read the books.
Hands up who have read the book and have not had ended with a crush on Professor Snape (if you're a woman of course...). Alan Rickman is brilliant as Professor Snape and he should be given a medal (or yet another award to his long list...). All I wish that there was more of him in the book - I could not wait for his snipy lines.
When my children get bigger I will definitively get them to read it, they've seen the first 5 movies and we can't wait for the last two. If the only criticism I have is that the movies are too dark and if you watch it all in one go, you do not have a chance to "grow up" with the story and younger viewers may find it too scary.
And guess what - one day I will read it all again...