Confessions of an Ex Bookworm, who will always be Potty for Potter.

Although it may be hard to believe seeing as I tend to only read trashy celebrity-based magazines nowadays, when I was younger (aged from around 3-11) I was an utter book-worm. I loved reading. If I wasn't playing in the park, you'd find me either in my local Library choosing a book or at home with my head stuck behind the cover of one. I loved absolutely nothing more than being transported into different situations, different worlds and being introduced to new people all via the magic of words and of course using a helping-hand of a good imagination.

Reading was strongly encouraged by my Grandma who used to be a teacher before she retired. She'd read to me all the time and I loved it. However bed time stories were my favourite; my Mum would read to me, tuck me up in bed, turn the light out and leave me to drift off to sleep whilst she went downstairs and watched Eastenders. (I was the ideal child who loved her sleep and her 7pm bedtime!) However as soon as Mum left my room, I'd un-tuck myself, put the light back on and start reading to my teddies until my eyelids would be too heavy to keep open and I inevitably fell asleep. Before going to sleep herself, my Mum would come back in to my room, remove the book from across my face and turn the light back off. This was a nightly routine. The reading to the teddies part stopped around the age of 5, when I had a new little baby brother to read to instead. I'd wake him up by jumping into his cot with him, and just like I did to my teddies, I'd read to him until I fell asleep. My Mum would then have to remove the book from both of our faces...! This routine didn't last long mainly because the novelty of having a baby brother wore off and also sleeping in a cot wasn't exactly comfortable at the grand age of 5, so I returned to my own bed and read to my teddies again instead!

I was a member of my local Library (Ensbury Park) at the tender age of 2. I was choosing my own books at that age also. I remember having 3 'tickets' that you would swap for books. I was such a regular that the 'Library Ladies' would let me take more than 3, sometimes up to 10 because they knew it wouldn't be long before I was back returning and swapping for another book! I would go at least once a week, sometimes as much as every other day. Like I said, I was a serious bookworm! The ladies would buy me a new bookmark on every birthday and Christmas. They were truly lovely! Sadly a mixture of things happened as I grew up which meant I didn't read as much. I moved meaning that the Library I had spent my childhood growing up in was now a 15 minute car journey (which isn't much, but compared to the 2 minute walk, it seemed like a lifetime away!) And I found a new hobby - boys. And was also introduced to make-up and magazines.

However, before all of these distractions I remember at Primary school having to work my way through the tedious but compulsory series of Letterland, Spot the dog and Biff, Chip and Kipper and their Magic Key adventures, until assisted reading was no longer needed. It was in year 3 and I was finally allowed to be let out into the deep depths of the school library, all by myself. I remember it as if it were yesterday. I was over the moon. I was repeatedly told to read slower, as I tried to storm my way through my last Biff and Chip, because I knew the minute after reading aloud that last sentence the Library would be all mine. For the first time, at school, I wouldn't be told what to read, but instead I could make that really grown up decision of what book to pick, all by myself. Even though I had been doing this for years at my local Library, it was still a massive achievement. When the time finally arrived I think I spent about half an hour before choosing the first book to take out. I settled for one of Enid Blyton's Secret Seven. I remember going home super excited because I had a book which had a black sticker on it, which pretty much meant you were a Top-dog! I rang my Grandma and told her the good news, not only was I allowed to pick out my own books, but I was the first in my year to do so. Geek! She congratulated me, and the next day popped round with a little present. She had bought me a new book which she had seen reviewed in the Guardian. It was written by an unknown author called J.K. Rowling. The book was titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. And that is where my love for all things Wizardry, Hogwarts and Harry-related begun.

In some circles of people I know, admitting that you're an avid Harry Potter fan is like confessing that you suck your thumb and snuggle a blanket. FYI I proudly do both of those too! Many of my family and friends fail to see the appeal of what I consider to be the greatest series of books written. Bold statement, but I truly believe it. It really aggravates me when people talk of their dislike for Harry. When I ask if they've tried reading any of the popular books and they bluntly respond "no" I genuinely want to throw a snitch at their head in the attempt of knocking some sense into them!

The Harry Potter books are the fastest selling books of all time. There are millions of super fans worldwide. But why do I, shallow, celebrity-obsessed, bag-and-shoe-fanatic, Emma Jamieson love Harry Potter so much? It's a mixture of things. A part of me has always been interested in magic. Simple card tricks amaze me. So imagine my absolute delight when I was welcomed into a world where invisibility cloaks were the norm. I for one would love to be able to wave a wand, conduct a spell and turn someone into a frog. I mean who wouldn't?! Also the characters are so easy to bond with. I genuinely believe that if I ever met Harry, Ron or Hermione we'd get along perfectly! Maybe that's because I've grown up with them. At the time of reading the books we were similar ages. Harry and the gang and I go way back! As I've already stated, I started reading the books way before the huge Harry hype kicked in. I waited eagerly for each next instalment. The waiting game killed me. As soon as I finished one book I needed my next Harry fix. I genuinely believe that Harry to me is what cocaine is to others! Another reason is because it gave me a whole different world to escape too. People often say how they believe that I live in my own world. This may be true, but whilst reading the Harry Potter books, I lived in their magical world, not my own! On a trip to London, when I was about 10, I made my Dad take me to Kings Cross Station in the hope that if I believed enough, I'd find platform 9 3/4 and be able to enter the world I so longed to be in. I didn't find it, sadly. For some this may seem delusional but when you read the books, the world in which the story is set captivates you. For the time you’re reading, you’re taken away from dismal realities to a place where, even when it’s at war, is a better alternative.

As for J.K. Rowling, she is an absolute Goddess. She's a genius, an incredible and stunning author and I'm yet to find another with talents that match hers. Subsequently she is in my list of top five people of who I'd pretty much do anything to meet. (The other four being Victoria Beckham, Britney, Julie Andrews and Dermot - I'm back to being the shallow celebrity lover that you all know!) If I were to meet her I'd thank her. Thank her for giving me Harry. Thank her for giving me another home; Hogwarts. But most importantly I'd thank her for helping me reignite my love for reading and reminding me that books are important.

She has a way with words like no other. Her style captivates you and she captures the moment perfectly every time and immerses you in the lines on the page you’re reading. Rowling’s language is fluid and easy-to-read, with the sentences rolling off the invisible tongue in your mind making it the perfect book for all, even an innocent child with modest English skills. Her descriptions are so vivid that the films weren't needed, if you read the books you would be instantly transported to Hogwarts through the pages, you didn't need Warner Brothers - they were just a bonus! Harry Potter has and probably always will be my favourite set of books, and that is all down to Rowling's enticing, addictive, believable and inviting writing techniques. So much so that I remember being so scared of my first encounter with Voldemort that I had to sleep with the light on for about a week after reading it, crying uncontrollably when Dumbledore died, and laughing out loud at Ron's misfortunes. I also remember queuing for several hours in Asda to purchase the final book at midnight, not being able to wait to start reading it, so starting in the car on the journey home. Then refusing to sleep until I had read the whole book. This took a total of eight hours. And for all of those whole eight hours I turned my phone off, and didn't look at the internet once. (For those who don't know me, this is pretty much unheard of for me. I can barely go eight minutes without checking my phone or the internet, let alone hours!) I remember going downstairs after finishing it and my mum being horrified because my eyes were so bloodshot where I hadn't slept and had been reading for so long. Harry was well worth it! Although there may not be any more books to come (a terrible shame) that doesn't mean it's the end. J.K Rowling once said that "Harry Potter will never end. It will only end when there are none who remain loyal to him." And I for one, having grown up in the Harry Potter generation, will remain loyal forever.

I always think about how much I miss reading and how I should make time to read more books, but I never get round to flipping doing it. Instead I've become a technology freak and waste my time on my phone, Twitter, facebook, writing blogs and watching rubbish on television. Although Harry Potter is the only book I'd ever put before technology, I think it's time to back away from the phone and start reading more books. I miss the excitement of not knowing where you are going to be taken when you first open a book. I miss the smell of old and over used but dearly loved books that my Grandma used to lend me. I also miss the feeling of opening a brand new book for the first time, and holding pages that never been touched by anyone else. Basically I miss reading. Nowadays the only reading I do is texts, tweets, facebook status', heat magazine and other celebrity based articles - not very impressive.

If anyone has any books that they would recommend, please do let me know by leaving a comment. But before I read any others, I'm going to reignite my love affair with Hogwarts by reading my seven favourite books again. It's been a while since I've felt their pages and seeing as I'm currently counting down the hours, minutes and seconds until Friday midnight which is when I will be watching the final film (which I have no doubt will be amazing, yet incredibly emotional) I think it's the perfect time to go back to the very beginning and once again live and breathe the magic and brilliance that is; Harry Potter.