I've read 2 or 3 of the Potter books, to see what they were about, and also because I have a long range plan to write some kids' books in a similar genre.
I was amazed at how poorly written they were. Non-existent character development, grey in tone, no visual imagery; the characters were shallow and two dimensional. They were like dull comic books in words, and the interests of the characters were materialistic to the nth degree.
The Narnia books are lightyears ahead. The Potter books are rather nasty in subject, style and purpose.
I would not compare Harry Potter to the Chronicles of Narnia or to Lord of the Rings as some have done.
But I wholeheartedly disagree with your opinion of the Potter books. And if you don't know if you've read "2 or 3" you may have "read" them, but you didn't "read" them.
I tried to read the first Narnia book and found it mind numbing. I just couldn't relate to any of it and the tone was priggish, IMO. Admittedly, I was reading the book aloud and I have more difficulty following things that way. But I certainly wasn't moved to pick up the book and read it on my own.
I think the Potter books began as tremendous, "light" fun but have moved beyond that to mostly interplay between characters. The basic plot of Voldemort wanting to kill Harry becomes secondary to Ron's struggle to assert himself past the role sidekick, Neville's emerging courage, the split in the Weasley family, Harry's acceptance of his father's humanity, the whole "is Snape friend or foe?" deal, Dumbledore's shortcomings, etc. I am interested in these "people". I want to see if they live up to my expectations, or exceed them.
Chalk me up as a fan of the Ron/Hermione pairing. I don't think we've met the girl for Harry yet. And I think that Neville is poised to surprise us all.