Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling
MG Fantasy. 309 Pages. 3 Stars
Synopsis:
Harry Potter’s life is miserable. His parents are dead and he’s stuck with his heartless relatives, who force him to live in a tiny closet under the stairs. But his fortune changes when he receives a letter that tells him the truth about himself: he’s a wizard. A mysterious visitor rescues him from his relatives and takes him to his new home, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
After a lifetime of bottling up his magical powers, Harry finally feels like a normal kid. But even within the Wizarding community, he is special. He is the boy who lived: the only person to have ever survived a killing curse inflicted by the evil Lord Voldemort, who launched a brutal takeover of the Wizarding world, only to vanish after failing to kill Harry.
Though Harry’s first year at Hogwarts is the best of his life, not everything is perfect. There is a dangerous secret object hidden within the castle walls, and Harry believes it’s his responsibility to prevent it from falling into evil hands. But doing so will bring him into contact with forces more terrifying than he ever could have imagined.
Full of sympathetic characters, wildly imaginative situations, and countless exciting details, the first installment in the series assembles an unforgettable magical world and sets the stage for many high-stakes adventures to come.
My Review:
Okay, so I decided to re-read this book (and the second one), so I could finally just read the whole series. It’s so well-loved and I have some great friends who rave about the series, so there must be something here worthwhile.
Now, I know it’s nostalgic for a lot of people, and I know I won’t ever connect with that since I didn’t read these as a kid. And the book isn’t bad. But I still didn’t love it the second time around. I listened to the audio book this time (and that narrator is amazing! Loved him! He totally made the experience so much more fun!) since that’s mostly what I have time for recently. But again, I just didn’t love it.
The story is fun. It’s an adventurous, quirky middle grade story. And I see why people would love that. I just personally didn’t think it was amazing.
Rowling has created a really fun world, and I do love exploring the nooks and crannies and watching her unfold pieces of this world. It feels really immersive and I love that in a book. And stylistically, the book still reminds me of Roald Dahl, which gives it a classic tone. The characters are each really unique and different, and that’s something that drew me in, too. I liked how I didn’t mix them up, even though there were many of them. I knew distinctly who each one was because of how Rowling had crafted them. I admire that.
The plot kind of drug on for me. Maybe because I’d read it once before. I don’t know. There are some interesting tidbits, but it seemed like one thing after another thing, and not everything seemed to tie in together (again, maybe that’ll make more sense in future books). I still stand by what I said originally and wouldn’t put this at the top of my favorites list. But I’m hoping after I finish the series, I will appreciate it more.
The magic was logically and scientifically approached, which was cool. I like the idea of a school, training students in different facets. As a teacher, it’s neat to see schools in stories. The book is middle grade, so no romance, no foul language, and very cleanly portrayed violence when there is any. There’s a dark lord and a great battle for good and evil. I’m curious about Potter’s place in the world, but I’ll have to read on to see that I suppose. I’d say the book is fine for early teens. Easy read, fun characters, decent plot.
More:
Book 2 in the Harry Potter series is Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (3 Stars)
Book 3 is Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (4 Stars)
Book 4 is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (4 Stars)
Book 5 is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (4 Stars)
Book 6 is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (4 Stars)
Book 7 is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (4 Stars)
Check out GR for more information or see my thoughts on the next book in the series below!
The series should be read in order.