Talk of witches, wizards and magic filled the Sun Room of the Memorial Union Monday night during a roundtable discussion of the world-famous Harry Potter series. The discussion kicked off Banned Books Week at Iowa State and featured guest speaker Kimbra Wilder Gish, a librarian from Tennessee. Gish discussed the controversial aspects of the Potter series and her paper about the subject, “Hunting Down Harry Potter: An Exploration of Religious Concerns about Children’s Literature.” Gish said her article does not support taking the children’s series off library shelves, but acknowledges the conflict in subjects such as divination and supernatural powers from a religious viewpoint. “A series like this helps view witchcraft as very positive,” Gish said. “I feel we should consider that in dealing with patrons for whom this is very real.” Gish said although characters in the Harry Potter series embody quality morals and attitudes for readers, the concerns of opponents to the series should be respected. “It is a belief system that I consider forbidden by God,” she said. “It’s as much real to them as your beliefs are to you.” Gish also said she does not think Harry Potter books should be used as Sunday School examples or be read aloud to children in the classroom. Other members of the discussion did not share Gish’s opinion; instead, they focused on the positive effect the series has had on young-adult literature and leisure reading. Ames Public Library Youth Service Coordinator Carol Elbert said the library has not been able to keep the book on the shelves and had more than 100 people on the waiting list for the fourth book in the series before it was in print. “I think there’s something really remarkable about a book that can do that, and I think that’s one of the most important things about Harry Potter,” she said. “[Parents] have the right only for their own children and not anyone else’s.”