"To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
This is my 7th or 8th time reading this book, the first time was when I was just 12 years old, about Harry's age in the first book. This book and the subsequent books in the series have defined a generation and have changed literature. I have never made it a secret that I love Harry Potter and regard it as one of the best book series ever written. I have remained a loyal, devoted fan, reading the books several times, at several different stages of life.
In 2007 when the 7th book came out, I decided to read the series again to refresh my memory and conjure the mood and feeling from the books again. Adam was so adamant that the books were ridiculous and stupid, such hype for such rubbish, that he mocked me all the way home from the book store where we purchased the books. When I got home, I slyly started reading the first chapter out loud within earshot of Adam, hoping that he would feel the magic catch up with him as it did me, the first time I read it.
A few days later I was starting the third book in the series on an airplane ride (I was really cruising through each one) Adam pulls out the second book. He was halfway through. He'd caught the magic and had read one and a half books in secret. Because of work (and the fact that Adam was out of school for the summer) he completed the series before I did.
This book is truly magical. Re-reading the books only solidifies the love I have for them. When a new character emerges I find myself emotional, knowing their fate and roll in Harry's life.
If aliens read my blog, or those that live under a rock and have no clue what the series is about:
Harry Potter has never been the star of a Quidditch team, scoring points while riding a broom far above the ground. He knows no spells, has never helped to hatch a dragon, and has never worn a cloak of invisibility.
All he knows is a miserable life with the Dursleys, his horrible aunt and uncle, and their abominable son, Dudley--a great big swollen spoiled bully. 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 of that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives by owl messenger: a letter with an invitation to an incredible place that Harry--and anyone who reads about him--will find unforgettable.
For it's there that he finds not only friends, aerial sports, and magic in everything from classes to meals, but a great destiny that's been waiting for him...if Harry can survive the encounter.
It truly is one of the best books of all time.
1 comment:
I remember that summer we moved to Pleasant View and were doing summer "Play Group" was when your Mom first told me about Harry Potter. The first two books were out that summer. We went out later that day and bought those first two books and I started reading to the kids. We would get up in the morning and do our chores so we could have our 'Adventure of the Day'. We would go someplace and see or do something and then usually end up in a park or up the canyon on a blanket to read a few chapters.
That summer was magical in more ways than one...thanks, at least in part, to JK Rowling and Harry Potter. I've read all seven books out loud at least twice. They were our best traveling distraction ever (because I can read without getting carsick. Sometimes I would wear my voice out because my kids liked it when I did the voices...my specialty is Dobby. They still ask me to speak in my Dobby voice sometimes. Oh the sillyness and fun!
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