What Harry Potter Tells Us About Millennials
by Craig Kennet Miller, Director of New Congregational Development and Specialist in Generational Studies, General Board of Discipleship

Imagine a children's book that weighs almost three pounds and has 734 pages. This would be the equivalent of six Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew books of yesteryear. Then think of a ten-year-old reading a 734-page book all through the night to catch up with the latest story of the wildly popular series of books that features Harry Potter, the now fourteen-year-old wizard, who's trying to make his way in the world.

What's wrong with this picture? This is supposed to be the Internet Generation that spends more time in front of screens than playing with friends in the neighborhood. This is supposed to be an underachieving generation for whom society laments its lagging standardized test scores around the country. Members of this generation are not supposed to like to read.

Yet because of the popularity of one series of books the New York Times is adding a children's bestseller list. Why? Because to the chagrin of adult book publishers, the Harry Potter books have dominated the New York Times best-selling list for the last two years. Because of the new children's book list, Harry Potter will no longer appear on the New York Times best-selling list. That list will now feature titles specifically for adults.

So what does this tell us about the readers of Harry Potter?

First, members of the Millennial Generation, those born from 1982 to 1999, are coming into their own. Especially powerful will be those born in the second wave — children who will range from second grade to seventh grade in the coming school year. Higher in number than the first wave whose leading edge is entering college this year, the second wave is already showing its influence in the marketplace. In the next couple of years, watch as hot selling movies, singers, and TV shows break new records by appealing to this new wave of adolescent consumers.

Second, this is the most highly educated generation we have ever seen. Fully seventy-five percent will go on to two-year or four-year colleges. With information at their fingertips and parents who are pushing them to succeed, a 743-page book is not an ordeal to get through. It's a welcome challenge.

Third, one of Harry Potter's appeals is the way Harry deals with the joys and pitfalls of using his new knowledge. While the focus is on learning skills related to magic, in its essence magic is the use of technology (Isn't mixing a potion a form of chemistry?) to control one's fate. As we move into genetic engineering and the continued transformation of communication with computer-generated technology, Harry's magic pales in comparison with the ethical and moral issues that will face this generation in the future. Designer babies, anyone?