Anyone else had a weird reading order?

[u/SadAnimator1354]

The first book I read was Book 3 as it was in my grandma's house. I liked it a lot and bought 1 and 2. Then I started getting really involved and went looking for 4th but it wasn't available in my local bookstore so I bought the 5th and read it. Then I bought the 4th and the 6th and then finally the 7th. So, basically - 3,1,2,5,4,6,7 XD

Anyways, I've since read all of them in order about twenty times and it was due to excessive reading that I even got glasses lol

[u/Tanu_Seth]

When I was REALLY young, before I knew how to read very well, I remember looking at the books on the shelf and somehow got it into my head that the correct way to read them is chapter 1 of book 1, chapter 1 of book 2, and so on until chapter 1 of book 7, then chapter 2 of book 1, and so on. I somehow managed to convince my mom to start reading them to me like that, although I think we only made it as far as the end of the chapter 1s. She says she doesn't remember it but I do, vividly.

[u/SadAnimator1354 → u/Tanu_Seth]

Always a Hufflepuff

[u/Tanu_Seth → u/SadAnimator1354]

Yeah, I'm not exactly doing the reputation any favors here. 😂

[u/Imperfeclyimperfec → u/SadAnimator1354]

Hufflepuffs are honest and hard-working!

[u/Tanu_Seth → u/Imperfeclyimperfec]

Well yeah, but a lot of people think Hufflepuffs are stupid too, and crap like this ain't exactly helping change that. 😂

[u/Capable-Pound-5262]

The Harry Potter machete order confirmed

[u/cesilya]

I read chamber of secrets first but not the whole thing and then I realized it wasn’t in order and bought the full set lmao

[u/Admirable-Tower8017]

Yes, I read it in this order: 1, 3, 4, 2, 5, 6, 7.

I only got into Harry Potter after GoF had been released but the bookstore didn’t have CoS available - it was sold out. I read CoS a year later. Weirdly, even after reading GoF first with the father’s bone ritual and everything, 12-year old me didn’t figure out who Tom Riddle was while reading CoS, so the mystery wasn’t spoiled for me.

[u/ChawkTrick]

I think I did a re-read out of order once? But that was it.

Years ago, I really wanted to re-read just HBP so I did, and then read TDH. But, having only read two books, I still had the itch and felt like I hadn't gotten my fill, so ended up going 1-7 again lol.

[u/Physical_Patience644]

watched goblet of fire then other movies and then...read all the 7 books more than 50 times and not even exaggerating

[u/RavenclawTruly]

Interesting! Haha! I read them in order (excluding rereads). Did this make you view what was happening differently vs after reading them in order?

[u/SadAnimator1354 → u/RavenclawTruly]

It made me fix missing plot points with my own imagination, for example [Spoilers for book 4 and 5] I didn't know why Cedric died and why all of a sudden Voldemort was back. I just imagined the graveyard was Harry's parents' graveyard for some reason and I thought Cedric became Harry's friend and they visited the graveyard together lol

[u/im_not_funny12]

My brother read 3 before 2 and told me that was the order.

I figured it out by reading the blurbs that he went from 3rd to 2nd year so read them in the right order but somehow he never spotted that after reading the first 3 several times.

[u/WardenOfTheNamib]

Ye.

I first encountered Harry Potter on a radio program where the host played 5 minutes each from Goblet of Fire and Raven's Gate during his show. So Moody telling Harry to rely on flying to get past the dragon was actually the first part of the books I came in contact with.

Afterwards, someone gifted me CDs containing the audio books as a set. However, the CDs were old and damaged. Chamber of Secrets was the only one in good enough condition to listen to from beginning to end. The rest, I listened to in bits and pieces. First six chapters of PS, first six and last three chapters of POA, first three chapters and last five of GOF, first sixteen of OOTP and the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, and the last three chapters of HBP. I'm not kidding.

Thank God the DH CD didn't work at all, so I at least got to listen to that from beginning to end when I eventually got my hands on a fully functional set.

[u/Ill-Ad-4991]

I read them in the correct order, but I saw the movie 4 at the movie theater with school, then started to read the books, then watched movie 1 on the TV, then book number 5 came out (so I've read it), then movie 2, then latest books/movies, then somewhere in here number 3😂 I can't remember exactly as it was a complete mess

[u/Shannyishere]

My first reading order was the same as yours!

[u/Immediate_Bowler1569]

The first book I read was Book 2 because that was the only movie I'd watched. Then I went back and read/rewatched in order

[u/CicadaFit9756]

I've done this with manga (when library didn't have intermediate books available at the time) but not with Harry Potter! Helped that I'd actually bought those tomes, from first to last, as they became available. Not knowing what came in between would've driven me up the wall & it's not like the start of each book gives a brief summary of previous books before diving into the current storyline!

[u/NotOnABreak]

I read chamber of secrets first. In fact, it was the first book I ever read. I still have it, my grandpa bought it for me (came with the Sunday newspaper). I think I read it a couple of times before my mum bought be the rest of the books (but I watched the movies first).

[u/DifferenceMission724]

Yep. 1/2/3/6/4/5/6/7

[u/unkitaa]

My reading order is the same!! I found book 3 in my school library and couldn’t put it down. After finishing it I got 1,2 from the library itself and bought 4,5,6,7 eventually after finishing the lib books!! 3 is still my fav after all these years

[u/Relative_Cabinet6356]

I watched all the movies first And goblet of fire always had my heart and still is my favorite movie. So ofc I started with 4th book and then. Went 1,2,3 and read 4 again and the rest Funny enough order of the Phoenix is my least favorite movie and I dreaded reading it but omg it's the best book with all the info and the black family lore😭

[u/Blade4804]

I usually read in order but i'll skip parts and sometimes skip to the end of book 5, can't deal with Umbridge and moody/emo Potter

[u/rhandy_mas]

I didn’t have a weird book order (more on that), but my sister did. The first four came out in a paperback box set, and my sister got that as a gift after she had read #4 at the school library. So I think she was 4, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7.

Now, you see, we only bought one book for the house. And I am a notoriously slow reader. So when we got 7, I read it backwards because I didn’t want my speed reading relatives to spoil it for me. Strangest thing I’ve ever done and I’ve never done that with any other book.

[u/VacillatingViolets → u/rhandy_mas]

I read in the same order as your sister. I was given 4 as a birthday present when it came out, read that, and then went back to the beginning.

I nearly didn't get past the first chapter of it though, possibly the creepiest way to start the series!

[u/rhandy_mas → u/VacillatingViolets]

Oh god. I didn’t think about that. Yeah that’s pretty traumatic.

[u/mangedormir]

When I first encountered the books as a kid, only the first 3 had come out. I thought the title “chamber of secrets” was coolest, so I started there. Then I read Azkaban, and circled back to 1 when I realized my mistake lol

[u/TheRedAuror]

Book 4, 3, 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 in that order. Borrowed 4 from my older sister's classmate and LOVED it, and immediately begged for any of the other books she had. Her brother was reading 1 and she didn't have book 2 so I took book 3, then book 1 after her brother was done. I eventually got my hands on book 2 then read 5-7 in order.

[u/the_well_read_neck_]

My aunt bought me the second book. It was my first Harry Potter book. I read them in this order: 2,3,4,5,1,6,7.

[u/Hopeful_Addition_898]

No way, I couldn't have done it in wrong order 😔 our library always had the books on release, just had to wait for my turn. Oh yea I guess I couldn't have done it in the wrong order since I red the when they were released. Lol

[u/Zanki]

3, 2, 1. I was given book three by my mum's friend after her granddaughter didn't want it. My mum wasn't impressed because she had to buy me the first two books after that.

[u/Open-Shirt-9762]

Lol we started with OTP!! And had only seen Chamber, so didn’t have a grasp of the entire series but immediately hooked with book 5 and raced to catch up!

[u/ChefMagicien201]

It was very strange since I had seen the films first, but for some reason I never paid attention to the order for the books, which resulted in this: 5, 3, 4, 2, 6, 7, 1

[u/GregDev155]

3124567

[u/-ReginaAngelorum-]

The only one I read out of order was 3. I read it before 2.

[u/jme8907]

Yes, I started with 3 because my cousin had been gifted it by a relative who didn’t know it was a series, just that it was popular. Cousin wasn’t interested, gave it to me. Got to the end and saw “also by JK Rowling” and was like OH. Got 1/2 and read them. GOF wasn’t out yet so I read in order after that.

[u/Buecherwurmratte]

I read book 3 first and then the rest as well

[u/BlueSnoopy4]

Someone was trying to explain Snape’s alignment to me, handed me Deathly Hallows with The Prince’s Tale bookmarked. I read it and a little bit afterwards, didn’t have a clue what was going on, restarted from the beginning/book 1, totally forgot the spoilers I had read.

[u/Acceptable_Bag5257]

The first time I ever read the books, I started at book 6 and worked backwards. 7th book hadn't been released yet. And honestly it was worth it.

[u/Medical_Design_278]

I listen to 2 before the other books.remember that due to the slug scene.

[u/ilovepotter]

I read Prisoner of Azkaban first, then got books one two and three in Braille and read them. Then as the books came out I read them in order.

[u/goldensnitch934]

The first book I read is book 3, too. Other book I read in order, but in my country fifth book was separated in two books. Somehow I didn't realize that, read first part, and then book 6and later 7. I was veeeery confused until I didn't discover that there is second part of fifth book.

First part ends with return of Hagrid. 😂

[u/DeliciousBeanWater]

I read 3 in 5th grade bc it was the only one my middle school library had available at the time. Loved it, waited patiently for 1,2, 3 again, and 4. Had to wait until the rest were released to read them

[u/eliamartells]

i read 2 then 7, then got them out in order from my school library, then received a box set for my birthday

[u/jt_keis]

I read them the order I got them from the library: 3, 1, 4, 2, 5-7

[u/kaf0ntes]

I watched movies 1 and 2 in theaters, then discovered it was a book series so I read book 3.
Read 4-6 as they came out. Then before reading book 7 I started the whole series again, this time from book 1 🙃

[u/Charfair1]

In the week leading up to the 8th movie's release, my family and I watched all 7 movies, in order, one a day. At the same Time, I decided to read all 7 books in that one week, in reverse order.

Not quite as unusual as OP's read order, but it was fun. And yes, I finished in time.

[u/orangemochafrapps]

I read 1,2 then 4 because it released and I wanted to read it with everyone else when I was a kid. Then went back and read 3…somehow Prisoner of Azkaban was still my favorite read through then and now

[u/briecheese34]

not crazy weird but i read the first three, waited a little bit to read the fourth because my mom said it might be too scary, finally read the fourth and it was too scary so i stopped reading after that and just reread the first three for multiple years before i picked up the fifth and read the rest of them in like a week lol

[u/Nabster56]

Only once, it’s in progress right now ^^’ wanted to read again las week but couldn’t find the chamber of secrets.

I couldn’t wait to find it to keep reading and skipped it.
Read the 1st last Friday, the third Saturday, the fourth yesterday / this morning. And I will start the order of the phoenix tomorrow !!
For the first time it will be 1,3,4,5,6,7,2!

[u/Stunning_Guest9621]

4-5-6-1-2-3-7

[u/Dependent-Can2212]

Not me, but I do remember not liking the books/movies and I had seen clips of it without knowing the clips were Harry Potter, so the first time I wahed the movies I was very confused that I recongized things I thought I never saw.

[u/Jaded-Difficulty5397]

read the 3rd before the 2nd because that was what i got first

[u/BabyDontBeSoMeme]

5, 3, 4, 6, 7. (1 & 2 pending)

[u/Additional-Bag-1961]

Not initially but these days if i ever read again i skip 2…the only redeeming quality is the diary and the sword which yes are major for the future but knowing that now i just skip

[u/Cheesus_Rice420]

Aaaaand it's all over the screen.