Do it for the children  

BigOldGeek apparently took almost 20 hours to finish the new Harry Potter, which isn't as fast as some I've heard about, but still demands... admiration? As someone who hasn't read any of the books or been to any of the movies (and he writes children's opera? you say) I can't really speak to this particular obsession. But I will mention a children's book I have been obsessed with, and which I read even more quickly. The book is Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert O'Brien, which entered my mind recently and stayed there until I picked up a copy and read it - cover to cover - last night. What a beautiful little story, and at the same time how bizarre for a children's book! I won't spoil the plot for you, but it's an existential masterpiece that I highly recommend. So if you're one of the children not fortunate enough to get a copy of the new Harry Potter this wk (and it sounds like you can blame BigOldGeek for this...) then go pick up a copy of Mrs Frisby - it certainly can't be any less imaginative.