What child has never dreamed of being a wizard? I certainly could’ve used a magic wand that contained within it the power to repel bullies who were always trying to steal my LEGO money. Yeah, I skipped eating lunch so I could save up to buy more bricks when our family went shopping at the end of the month. I used to try casting the “Alosermora” spell to no effect – other than generating a fistful of black eye.

I admit to never having read a single page from the Harry Potter book series. I’ve always been more of a visual learner, and I figured it was pointless to suffer through endless paper cuts just to find out how Voldemort ‘He Who Shall Not Be Named’ bites it. Yeah, he had it coming.

I wouldn’t really consider myself a Harry Potter fan – but since there are plenty of Harry Potter LEGO sets to go around, I figured it was about time I assembled one for the low cost of $12 (in muggle currency). Even though I was the one who threw it into the shopping cart, my mom is the one who actually bought the Enchanted Forest for me. Yeah, I’m pushing 40 and my mom still buys me LEGO. You got a problem with that?

The biggest selling point for me? Four minifigs – Tom Riddle (although, he preferred to be referenced as Voldemort), Harry Potter in Hogwarts Uniform, Belatrix Lestrange Narcissa Malfoy, and Hagrid. The biggest surprise? Noticing that the Hagrid minifig has fingers! I only noticed when I was setting up to record the video walkthrough of the “forest” (which was really nothing more than a tree).

I might find myself picking up a few more smaller Harry Potter sets as I find them (though I had earlier attained a collection with Dobby). But, since I’ve already seen the films, I probably won’t take the time to read the books. I realize there were several parts of the entire story that were dropped altogether. Maybe these bricks will help close those gaps? Eh, they’re not THAT magical.

If I had a true complaint about the Enchanted Forest LEGO set it would be that… well, I guess I don’t have anything to complain about. My girlfriend did trick me with the spider minifig, though. She knows I’m an arachnophobe, so she placed the eight-legged piece of plastic atop my iPhone and waited for me to scream like a little girl. I did.

Jeez, could this review make me sound like any more of a…

Harry Potter Enchanted Forest LEGO Set – Brick Magic!

With only three weeks remaining before “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” becomes available, Amazon has announced that pre-orders of the book have reached more than 1 million copies in the U.S. – surpassing the previous pre-order record of 919,000 held by the previous book in the series, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” In addition, enthusiasm for the final book continues to grow worldwide with nearly 1.6 million pre-orders of the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”, eclipsing the previous worldwide record of 1.5 million.

To show Amazon’s appreciation to its loyal customers and Harry Potter fans, Amazon is offering every customer who pre-orders “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” before July 21 a $5 Amazon promotional certificate to use on a future purchase. For orders placed by Tuesday, July 17, 2007 at 12:00 p.m. EDT using standard shipping or better (including Amazon Prime), Amazon guarantees delivery of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” on Saturday, July 21, the first day the book is available, to all addresses within the lower 48 states.

Harry Potter Gift Certificates on Amazon