When it came time for me to pick a topic to write about for Harry Potter week, there was only one thing that immediately came to mind: Hermione Granger. But while I knew that I wanted to write about my favorite bookworm, I had trouble deciding exactly what I wanted to say about her. One suggestion was that I write a response to this excellent critique of Hermione’s activism, but while it’s an amazing article that you should all check out, it didn’t feel like it was talking about my Hermione. I did some digging around and found another post talking about Hermione, Ginny, and Luna as “the Girls Who Weren’t Chosen Ones,” and then yet another from around the time of the controversial Hermione/Ron comments J.K. Rowling made earlier this year. But every article I read about Hermione, while nice and all bringing up some of the things I love about her, still didn’t seem right. All of them felt like they were missing something. Where was my Hermione in all of these posts?
I feel like I should begin by admitting that the first time my mom tried to get me to read the first Harry Potter book, I wasn’t impressed. I think I wasn’t particularly interested in another fantasy story where boys got to have all the fun (I didn’t get past the first couple chapters, clearly). When I eventually did get sucked into the series around the time the second book came out, I immediately fell in love with Hermione. Hermione was my connection to the Wizarding World, and when asked which character I most wanted to be, she was always my answer, without hesitation.
Hermione is one of those characters that I love so much, I have trouble articulating just what makes her so special to me. As I grew up reading the series, Hermione was a role model for me, and in many ways she still is. She’s the kind of role model where really you just wish you could be her, but instead end up just imitating her with your Whimsic Alley wand when alone in your room with “Hedwig’s Theme” playing in the background. Buzzfeed has a “23 Signs You Are Hermione Granger” article (which you can read here) and every item on there either describes my actual traits, or traits to which I aspire. I think Hermione was probably one of my earliest role models other than Xena: Warrior Princess, or Captain Janeway, but she was also the first role model that I could really see myself in. I always laugh when I think of the infamous “light reading” line because I certainly have picked up similarly absurd books to be “light reading.” My college yearbook quote was even from Hermione: “Books! And cleverness! There are more important things – friendship and bravery.”
In short, the best thing I can say about Hermione Granger is that she makes me smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Hermione is smart, brave, loyal, and a whole lot of other great things. She has her faults, but so do the rest of us. After all, in the period we read about her, Hermione goes from age 11 through her awkward teenage years, and I’m pretty sure most of us did something stupid during that time. I know Hermione isn’t perfect, but for me, she will always be very special. I love Hermione Granger, faults and all, and she will always be one of my favorite literary heroines.
Can anybody do a better job of putting their love of Hermione into words? Or do you have other characters (in the Potterverse or otherwise) who make you feel similarly?
The Daily Geekette 
Hermione Granger rocks
Before I saw a single movie in the series, I went to a Warner Bros. store which was being swamped with Harry Potter merchandise. I was stunned to hear adults were reading the books more than kids and feared brainwashing was afoot. But, regardless, even then, I took an interest in this Hermione character as well as the big, burly “groundskeeper.” I couldn’t care less about Harry, Ron or anyone else (that is until I saw Moaning Myrtle among a few other impressive female characters). [Male characters were nothing special though a few provided comic relief. I did like the whole Tom Riddle/spider forest and the “double agent” teacher aspects of the second movie/series.] I am not sure I would have cast who the filmmakers did as Hermione, but she made a name and face for herself, a face the young man who played Harry seems quick to erase lest he only be known as a young wizard.
I wonder how you would have felt had you picked the books up yourself or through school versus your mother pressing them upon you.
Xena as role-model? Dare I ask how old you were when that happened?:) Now, Janeway had some merit. But, I think Major Kira, Odo and Seven of Nine proved more interesting.