The end of an era

My childhood ended on Sunday, July 22, at approximately 10:30 AM. No, my birthday's not until later in the summer. And no, I did not witness a triple homicide or get pregnant.

I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

I found it hard to explain, even to myself, why I got so worked up about it. I read it on the car trip back from South Dakota, and barely paused to breathe. And now I'm on Facebook, sadly perusing the groups I once joined when I was but a child: "Fuck This, I'm Going To Hogwarts," "After Harry Potter Seven Comes Out I Won't Have Anything To Live For".

It's the end of a series that's been around for all of my teenage years. It just feels weird to think that there are no more Harry Potter books coming.

UPDATE: A Harry Potter Encyclopedia, some hard-core super-epilogue material.

And an interview with J.K. Rowling, in which she gives us a few hints on what might be in that Harry Potter encyclopedia: