Book Review – J. K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”
Yes, believe it or not, but I just finished reading the first Harry Potter book.
Go ahead and laugh now so you can get it out of your system.
Feel better? Okay, let’s go.
For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past ten or so years, the Harry Potter books have been flying off the shelves and the movies have been smash hits in the theaters. The main plot lines involve a young boy and his classmates as they attend a special school for witches and wizards somewhere in England. The first year in the school involves everything from mischievous classmates and a sinister professor or two to owls delivering the mail and a sporting event involving teams of students flying around an arena on broomsticks while trying to score goals.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is a fantastic look into the world of magic and witchcraft. Reading the story is addictive, and the cast of characters and magic spells are entertaining as well. And of course, who would know that purchasing a magic wand was as easy as going to the store just around the corner?
The part of the Harry Potter world I like best is the way that such a universe could exist around us. It’s not like these stories are set back in medieval times. This is a modern setting and parts of the story take place in real locations. It’s just that to access the magical locations, well, you just have to know where to look.
Take Diagon Alley for example.
The shopping center is right in the middle of London. It’s just that accessing it involves punching a secret code on a blank wall, and when entered correctly, a magical doorway opens for access to Diagon Alley. The non-believers simply walk past the blank wall as if nothing exists on the other side.
The same is true for the King’s Cross train station and gaining access to Platform 9-3/4. Walking through a seemingly blank wall gained you access to the other platform at the railroad station and access to Hogwarts Express, train service to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
But then there’s the big question: can regular people (known as Muggles or non-believers) see the Hogwarts Express as it rolls across the tracks, and can they look down and see Hogwarts School when flying above it on an airplane?
I don’t recall those issues being addressed in the story. My own belief is that we’re flirting with the theory of parallel worlds and parallel universes. The wizarding world aligns with most of the world that we see and know today, but to access certain parts of it requires pushing through magical barriers unknown to the modern world. An “invisible” train platform located past a brick wall may entirely exist in a similar but slightly different parallel world. The only trick is knowing where to find the “doors” to and from the parallel worlds.
But that’s just my theory. It could be way off from what’s explained later in the stories. The author may have had a different view of the world entirely.
As far as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, just let your imagination run wild and you’ll have a blast with the story. The more you already know about medieval folklore (namely wizards and dragons), then the more that you’ll be able to enjoy the HP world. Those familiar with the ways of the Jedi from Star Wars may feel oddly familiar with elements of the story, too.
For me, I’m glad that I saw the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone movie before reading the book. I saw the movie for the first time this past summer and once again about a month ago. Having faces and somebody else’s vision going through my mind really helped speed along the process of reading the book. It also helped explain many of the events in the movie and gave a deeper look into the magical world itself.
I’m looking forward to reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets soon. I’ve already started reading a different book, but the HP sequel is next in line after that. And hopefully near the end of the year will involve a trip to Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure theme park and visiting the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter land (in addition to everything else in both Universal Orlando theme parks, of course). Hooray!
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These reviews and much more are available at my other website, Chamber of Reviews!