Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone: A Review

by: Luke Fahnestock

For this blog post, I have chosen to review one of my old favorite books. As you can probably already tell, I will be revisiting the wildly popular Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Now before you click away because of She-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, hear me out. This report is in no way an endorsement of the author, it is simply a way for me to take a trip down memory lane. I first began reading this book all the way back in 4th grade, and rereading it triggers so many nostalgic memories.

    Harry Potter is a completely ordinary 11-year-old boy. Well almost completely ordinary. His parents died in a “car crash” when he was young and the only mementos from his past are blurred memories and a strange lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. He lives with his extremely ordinary aunt and uncle who severely mistreat him. But then one day his life starts to become very extraordinary. Harry receives a letter in the mail from a school called Hogwarts. This letter is an invitation for him to attend Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. Initially his aunt and uncle are vehemently opposed to sending Harry off to learn magic, but they are eventually forced into submission when Hagrid, the giant school gatekeeper, pays the family a visit. With Hagrid as his guide, Harry finally enters the wizarding world. To his great bewilderment, every witch and wizard seems to know his name and revere him. As Harry goes to school, he not only learns more about magic, but learns more about himself and who he truly is. Harry loves his newfound power and identity in the wizarding world, but he is about to learn that he is in mortal danger. Entering into the wizarding world unleashed his past, and he will be forced to learn some unsavory truths.

    For me, the entire Harry Potter series has many fond memories attached to it. I have an inexplicable sensation associated with the books that makes them unlike any other fantasy series. Despite the slow nature of the first few chapters, the book still manages to maintain an audience’s interest. It is a quick introduction to the much longer books later in the series. My only plot critique would be that the ending resolves a complicated problem in an unreasonably quick manner. I greatly appreciate the whole series because rereading it always manages sparks a cozy nostalgic feeling. 




Comments

  1. Ross KimmeMarch 11, 2022 at 8:40 PM

    Great book review. Your blog post gave me a lot of nostalgia as I remember reading the books when I was in elementary school. The book was quite interesting to me at the time and I remember it as a page turner that kept me reading.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Deven GalvezMarch 13, 2022 at 11:41 AM

    Great book review! I too remember reading this book at a young age and could never put the book down. Your post described the book perfectly without giving away any major details. Overall, great post!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jonathan OuyangMarch 14, 2022 at 7:17 AM

    Good book review! I actually started Harry Potter quite late, but I remember continuously re-reading it for over a year.

    ReplyDelete

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