Harry Potter is staring me in the face. Literally. Across from my office a Barnes and Noble window is covered in posters spelling “HP 7.” The Harry Potter phenomenon is everywhere, with hype surrounding the seventh and final book of the series, and the release of the fifth movie. I’m not out of the loop on many things, but having dismissed the books as children’s fare long ago, I couldn’t keep up with “muggle” conversations.
At a recent trip to a used-book store, I found the first two books, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on sale for $1.50 each. The $3 investment led me to explore what Harry Potter and friends had to offer an adult looking for a satisfying summer read.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, by J.K. Rowling, begins by introducing us to the Dursley family, of which Harry is a reluctant member. His own parents died while he was young, leaving him in the care of his irritated aunt and uncle. Harry grew up knowing he was different from other children, but only fully realizes his uniqueness once he receives a letter from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry, like his deceased parents, is a wizard.
Our hero soon boards the Hogwarts express to the depths of Rowling’s imagination. The rules of the wizard world are much different than the world in which Harry lived. As he is introduced to strange elements, the reader also becomes familiar with the fictional environs. Harry’s posse, including Ron Granger and his red-headed family, and know-it-all Hermoine Granger, bring him up to speed on the Hogwarts surroundings. Living in Gryffindor is good, Slytherin dormitory is bad. Dumbledore is good, Voldemort he-who-should-not be-named is bad.
Rowling guides us through Harry’s first year at Hogwarts following his ups, becoming an important player on the Quidditch team, and his downs, confrontations with the bully Malfoy. Throughout the year, Harry and the Gang think they’ve discovered a professor who turned to the dark side. Could one of the professors really be helping Voldemort? The author successfully builds the mystery, keeping the reader in suspense until the conclusion of the novel. Some puzzle pieces, however, go undiscovered, leaving the world-wide audiences to continue reading Harry’s adventures and watch them come to life on the big screen.
Imaginative storytelling plays the largest role in Rowling’s tale. Had Harry’s problems taken place on an ordinary school yard, children would probably still have been interested, but the creative descriptions of the scenery somewhere beyond London truly captivate readers of any age. The writing style seems geared toward pre-teens but, anyone can appreciate the magic of the wizard kingdom. Rowling’s themes will also resonate with children and adults alike. Feelings of personal insecurity, comfort in friends, and good versus evil among your peers will all be familiar sentiments.
I’ve read half of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and while I won’t be waiting in line at midnight to purchase the seventh book, I will definitely be among those reading the literary finale hoping for a happy ending.
