| $@%&! level: Low “Bedroom” level: None Violence level: Medium (fantasy violence, of course) Back Cover: “Harry Potter has never played a sport while flying on a broomstick. He's never worn a cloak of invisibility, befriended a giant, or helped hatch a dragon. All Harry knows is a miserable life with the Dursley's, his horrible aunt and uncle, and their abominable son, Dudley. Harry's room is a tiny closet at the foot of the stairs, and he hasn't had a birthday party in eleven years. But all that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives by owl messenger: a letter with an invitation to a wonderful place he never dreamed existed. There he finds not only friends, aerial sports, and magic around every corner, but a great destiny that's been waiting for him...if Harry can survive the encounter.” |
Unfortunately for my hipster sensibilities, I was hooked from the first chapter. There's just something indefinable excellent about the way J.K. Rowling writes. It's like she's tapped directly into the irony field of the world. Actually, seeing the funny is probably the only way Harry makes it to his eleventh birthday with as few social and emotional problems as he does. And since it's written almost entirely from his perspective, we get to see the funny just like he does.
I think many people would agree that The Sorcerer's Stone (or Philosopher's Stone if you're lucky enough to live in a country where the publishers have a higher opinion of their readers' intelligence) is the simplest of the Harry Potter plotlines. It flows so easily that you don't even notice how complex it actually is, and it all wraps itself together beautifully. Even the loose ends are left hanging on purpose. So, yeah, I could go on at length about how brilliant I think J.K. Rowling is, but I think I'll hold back the effusion. (Seriously, though. Totally excellent!)
One of the things I frequently enjoy doing is to look for the good stuff—the life lessons if you will—in the things I read. Here's one from The Sorcerer's Stone: Harry has all the wealth and fame he could ever want, and he gets it after growing up for ten years in a household that systematically abuses and neglects him. The Dursley's do their best to ignore him and leave him out, he never gets quite enough to eat, and he never gets anything until his cousin is done with it. You'd think having plenty of money and attention would be his number one wish—but it isn't. What Harry wants more than anything else is to have a family that loves him. That's it. Even if his family was poor and unimportant, he wouldn't care. In other words, Harry's friend Ron has everything that Harry wants—and takes it for granted, even wishes he had less of it. I guess it's a sad kind of way to make the point about the importance of family, but very effective.
So, if you've been avoiding reading Harry Potter because it's too mainstream, maybe you should think about deciding for yourself what you like, regardless of how many other people do or don't like it. If you've already read it, I assume I'm either preaching to the converted or wasting my time.