So my characters are just as aware and love these things just as much as I do. REICHERT: Inevitably, I'm a very nerdy person, so through all of my books, even though I write these fun romantic comedies, there is, like, this undercurrent of nerd. ROBBIE COLTRANE: (As Hagrid) Welcome, Harry, to Diagon Alley. That's one of my favorite scenes in the movies, too. So I always really just love that first time Harry gets to go to Diagon Alley and see the magical world in its fullness. I've loved the idea of - there is this parallel, fantastical world running next to ours that only special people get to see and be a part of. I have always loved fantasy and science fiction. RADCLIFFE: (As Harry) Make a wish, Harry. First of all, I cannot believe it's been 25 years. (SOUNDBITE OF JOHN WILLIAMS' 'HEDWIG'S THEME')ĪMY E REICHERT: Wow. Rowling's, you know, comments on trans people. I have kind of complicated emotions about J.K. But the thing is - is, overall, the books are a little bit complicated for me now. I'd love for some other reader to really enjoy disappearing into my world as much as I used to into the 'Harry Potter' world when I was a kid. LAM: Especially as kids, we read to escape, and we read to kind of believe that, like, you can be more than you've been told you can be. WATSON: (As Hermione) Honestly, don't you two read? Nicholas Flamel is the only known maker of the Sorcerer's Stone.ĭANIEL RADCLIFFE: (As Harry Potter) The what? (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, 'HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE')ĮMMA WATSON: (As Hermione Granger) Of course. LAURA LAM: I always loved that Hermione was wicked smart and wasn't really ashamed of it. We start with Laura Lam, author of 'Pantomime' and 'Shadowplay.' We're going to hear now from three of those authors on what 'Harry Potter' has meant to them. The 'Potter' series has been hugely influential, especially for young writers, though some are conflicted about its author, J.K. Twenty-five years ago, the first 'Harry Potter' book was published in the U.K.

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