The reason people get so worked up over Harry Potter (and other fantasy/thriller books and movies) is because people love thinking about something more than there normal everyday lives. It helps people cope with the problems in real life, or at least thats what I think. There are people who like the Harry Potter books and movies, and then there are just the kind of freaky people who take it to a totally obsessive level, and buy just about everything that has to do with it, and go to all of the book signings and Harry Potter conventions.