Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
"I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter day in the future - there will be books written about Harry - every child in our world will know his name."
Professor McGonagall,in the first chapter titled "The Boy Who Lived"
By now there's not much that can be said about the Harry Potter phenomenon that hasn't been said already.Worshipped by kids,enjoyed by adults,this modern myth has become an accepted classic worldwide.Pull any copy of the series off a shelf anywhere in the world and you're holding magic.
It's not hard to see why.Right from the first page of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (or "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" for those reading in the UK) Rowling proves that she knows a thing or two about the kind of magic that brings stories to life.
The book starts with Harry as an infant,the child of a wizard and witch.He is suddenly left orphaned after an attack by the evil and powerful wizard Voldemort,a villain so dastardly that most wizards and witches refer to him as "You-Know-Who".Mysteriously,Harry survives and Voldemort,his power apparently broken in his attempt to kill the child,disappears leaving many to think he's gone for good.Codex Alera spreads fast and Harry is hailed as a hero.Even though he's just a baby his victory over Voldemort makes him an overnight celebrity among magic users the world over.
As a result,the Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry step in to decide Harry's future.They decide to take the child out of the spotlight and allow him to live a normal life with his only remaining relations,a Muggle family named Dursley,until he is of age to attend the Hogwarts school.They leave Harry on the doorstep of the Dursley's home,with no more than a letter of explanation.
The story truly begins nearly ten years later,after Harry has endured a childhood of constant scorn and hatred at the hands of his new family.Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia are embarrassed by the fact that Harry's mother considered herself a witch and married a man who claimed to be a wizard.The Dursley's simply don't hold with such nonsense.They consider themselves respectable.
As Muggles go,the Dursley's may not be prime examples of the worst of their kind,but they rank pretty high.They force Harry to sleep in a cupboard under the stairs and to wear their spoiled son's damaged cast-offs.Harry is little more than a servant and a punching bag to his cousin Dudley.But worst of all,Mr.Dursley has not read Dumbledore's letter to Harry,leaving the boy unaware of such things as his heritage,the truth about his parents death and his emerging powers.
Then everything changes with the delivery of a letter in a very unusual fashion.From that point on,Harry's life is never the same again.The letter is actually an acceptance letter,a notification to Harry that he has a place at Hogwart's school.Literally rescued from the Dursley's and taken under the wing of Hagrid,the school's lovable giant of a groundskeeper,Harry embarks on the adventure of a lifetime in the hallowed halls of Hogwarts where in addition to his studies he makes close friends and a lifelong enemy,discovers a talent for a very unusual sport called Quidditch and solves a mystery that threatens the world,not to mention his very existence.
The magic potion Rowling herself concocts starts solidly with Harry,a remarkably unassuming kid who's got "hero of mythical proportions" written all over him.He's courageous,clever and resourceful.He's got a special talent in the form of magical powers,and a noble and mysterious birth.He's wounded - a big one in myths - not just physically as evidenced by the scar on his forehead,but emotionally as well due to the death of his parents,not to mention a tortured upbringing by uncaring relations that rivals Cinderella's.But most of all,as was hinted right from the start,he's got one heck of a destiny.All this comes together to introduce a character the reader immediately bonds with.You *really* want to be this kid's friend and hang out with him to see what happens.
Next into the potion goes a heavy dose of down-to-earth realism - the kind of everyday stuff recognized by almost every kid in the world...but WAIT!You,gentle reader,are never allowed to get comfortable in the world of the often stupid,ever boring Muggles,because you're not one of them,are you?Of course not.You know better,because Rowling blends in the essence of magic fantasy with such skill that Harry's world literally shimmers with it.Because you're not a Muggle,you can see it all around you as you read.
The rest of the ingredients are just as high in quality,from the magical,mysterious yet somehow familiar Hogwarts School to the friends that help Harry get through it all,to the exciting conclusion.Rowling serves it all up with a deceptively simple and straight forward writing style that sparks
a response deep in the subconscious,drawing the reader in and holding on tight.The fact is,this story is not just read,it's experienced and that's the magic right there.
Of course,adults have to fight their Muggle tendencies and indulge in a little suspension of disbelief to get full enjoyment of the story.For example,those of you who read a lot of Tom Clancy might have trouble getting past the fact that such occurrences as motorcycles flying over London and entire groups of people who vanish into thin air at train stations,go virtually unnoticed.The exact purpose of the wizards trained at Hogwarts in relation to the world is never really explained,except in some vague reference to the further study and possible control of the other preternatural type creatures such as dragons,zombies and vampires who also go unnoticed by the Muggle world.Apparently,when it comes to Muggle mind control,it's everyone's game.Those readers with sci-fi leanings might start picturing Hogwarts as existing in an alternate dimension of sorts but that's not the point.The point is suspension of disbelief.It just all happens because it does and no one in the real world knows about it but those involved...and that's that.
Though I thoroughly loved this book,my only off moment came near the end,where I began to wonder exactly how suitable the images depicted were for the impressionable minds of Rowling's younger readers.Still,at the ripe old age of 32,I might just be over-reacting.
"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" is a fantastic book,well plotted with strong characters that not only talk and act like real kids,but are also great role models as well.These kids do their homework,brush their teeth,study for exams and still have time to get into trouble in the name of a good cause.There is one excellent and well spelled out moral in the story that doesn't detract from the plot and if the reason why Harry survived Voldemort's attack doesn't leave you with a lump in your throat and a tear in your eye,I suggest you read it again.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who hasn't read it yet,kid or adult.Let it carry you away with the knowledge that you're reading a classic that will be read and loved by generations to come,just like the fairy-tales of old.