ABSTRACT
In J. K. Rowling’s new classic of youth literature, Harry Potter, the mythical sport of Quidditch emerges as a p owerful organizing agent for the lives of young inhabitants of the wizarding world. With everything from the Quidditch World Cup to fi erce intra-school rivalries played out high in the air on super-charged broomsticks and beater bats, Quidditch provides the backdrop for much of what Harry and his friends do and think about when not fi ghting the evil wizard, Lord Voldemort. Th e students’ intra-school Quidditch matches are full of rivalries, gruesome injuries, and last-minutes heroics by both girls and boys desperate to win the match for the honor and respect of their team and their house.
