The entire Harry Potter craze was running rampant by the time I picked up the first book. I'd heard about it the books being good but despite their praises on the news and the lips of my classmates, I wasn't interested. Even when one of my friends told me she was getting her aunt to pick up the British versions in an attempt to get them faster I remember laughing and thinking that the books she was describing, about a boy wizard and a school for wizardry, did not sound like they were worth that amount of effort. Witches, I would read about, but I had no interest in a male protagonist.
Harry Potter was below me.
My mother ended up getting Sorcerer's Stone in a second hand bookstore on sale, just in case. I ignored it at first, but everyone kept on telling me to at least try it. After about a month, I gave in.
I finished it in a day and was forever lost to the fervor that was Potterdom. J. K Rowling catapulted to the top of my list of favorite authors.
We got the rest of the books for Christmas: I locked myself in my room and read all of them in two days.
'This boy will be famous, a legend. I wouldn't be surprised if today was
known as Harry Potter day in future. There will be books written about
Harry, every child in our world will know his name.'
-Minerva McGonagall.Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
This book was all it took to make me a Potterhead for life. The story is nothing new really: a young orphan boy with an unfortunate life learns that he is special, journeys to a new place, makes new friends, and has an adventure. This could be the plot synopsis for any book but Rowling's unique take on witches, wizards, and the society they live in reeled me and millions of others in. Harry Potter's entrance into the wizarding world is the reader's own and he holds you rapt as he navigates this unfamiliar terrain armed with humor and luck, trying to unravel the mystery surrounding him. By the end of the book you are in love with him, Hermione, and Ron; sad that he has to go back to the Dursley's; and desperate for the next book to come out.
"I hope you're pleased with yourselves. We could all have been killed — or worse, expelled." -Hermione Granger
The humor was my first love in the story. The movies lose this, but Harry is hilarious. His point of view is filled with sarcastic comments and wry observations. The other characters are funny as well, intentionally or not. Ron's speech and actions often bring a smile to the lips as do Dumbledore's. Hermione's dedication to studying and school above all else including life are always good for a laugh. Draco's insults were amusing. And Snape's dry wit had me rolling even when he was putting people down.
The characters were definitely my next love. Harry was my favorite at first, then the intelligent and bossy Hermione, and then Ron. But I also liked Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy. By my third re-read, the twins, George and Fred, were favorite characters as well.
The setting was great. Diagon Alley was an interesting way to show how wizards lived among us and separate at the same time and Gringotts was everything you'd expect from a bank run by goblins. I wanted to go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The school might be ridiculously dangerous, (staircases that change as you walk on them and a forest filled with deadly creatures where you are expected to serve detention) and the Headmaster dangerously lax about students' safety (because there were a million better hiding places for the stone than in a place with children) but I still wanted to be Sorted. I wavered between Slytherin and Ravenclaw as my house of choice. Ravenclaw was the house of the intelligent and studious, but Slytherin was for the cunning and it's students rocked green and silver as their colors.
All of these elements combined to make Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone an unforgettable reading experience and a source of inspiration for me. And the hints and foreshadowing to her future books that Rowling put in it helped make the entire series exceptional.
'There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it …"
-Professor Quirell
I was hoping to hear that you resisted the books to the end. It seems I am the only one who is not crazy about Harry potter. It contradicts my religious beliefs. I am glad you like it though.
ReplyDeleteI tried to resist in the beginning, but they sucked me in. My dad had a few things to say about them and religion at first (he's Catholic and the pope didn't like them), but because I was already firm in my belief, he let me read them.
DeleteI held out on the Harry Potter books until book 5 came out and most of my family coerced me into reading it, and I was in the book store every release day after that. There is some really good sci fi and fantasy stuff out there these days, a lot of crap, but a lot of good. I am also curious to see what J.K Rowling's new book will be about.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you gave in. I was at every midnight release party, dutifully waiting in line so I could be one of the first to get the book. I can't wait to see what JK's new book will be though. I wish she would write more HP, but her new story might be almost as epic.
DeleteI also discovered Potter late in life. I first heard about this book from a coworker back in 1998 and resisted reading it because I thought they were for kids, and my reading tastes ran towards the sophisticated. Five years later, I came across the Sorcerer's Stone in the waiting room of my dentist. I picked it up and flipped through it out of curiosity. I was hooked. I filched it from my dentist, devoured it in one night and bought the next three novels the next day. I am a rabid Harry Potter fan. I've reread the books countless times. So sad its over but have no fear. JK Rowling is publishing a new book later this year. Although it won;t be a Potter book, I'm sure it will be great.
ReplyDeleteOne of the reasons my mom bought the book was that her friend, a doctor, loved them. They might have been originally intended for children, but they are definitely written so adults can enjoy them multiple times. I can't wait for JK's new book.
DeleteI watched the final movie in the film series, and that is the only experience I have of Harry Potter from any medium, film or book.
ReplyDeleteI often judge and critique the series based off what I know from that final movie alone.
Not to sound like a rabid Potterhead but... you have to read the books if you want to judge the series! Read the books! The movies were nothing compared to the books. Nothing. They left out so many things. Although the last movie was one of the better ones, it still barely does justice to JK's written words. Especially since the last book wasn't even the best in the series, not by a long-shot. Again, read the books! I'm one of those snobs who doesn't consider anyone who hasn't read the books a true fan and you definitely can't critique the series if you haven't read them. (yeah... I probably sounded like a rabid Potterhead anyway)
DeleteI used to read them growing up and then I stopped. I should probably give them a second chance :/
ReplyDeleteYou definitely should give them a second chance. It's one of those series that you can read again multiple times and pick up something new each time.
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