Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone: Book Review

I know, I know... I should've read this book a LONG time ago, but I was never really that interested in the Harry Potter series, until recently. Sal is a huge Harry Potter fan, of the movies that is. Therefore, every time a new movie came out, I was dragged to the movie theater to see it, sometimes even for the Midnight showing. So with each new movie, came new found interest in wanting to know more about this Harry Potter boy. The day after HP7 came out, I went and purchased the first book. I already had the second and third, don't ask me why I didn't have the first. It took me a couple of weeks to finish it, probably because of school and work, but I didn't want to put the book down, I wanted to know more about Harry's adventures. 


Synopsis According to Amazon.com: 

Say you've spent the first 10 years of your life sleeping under the stairs of a family who loathes you. Then, in an absurd, magical twist of fate you find yourself surrounded by wizards, a caged snowy owl, a phoenix-feather wand, and jellybeans that come in every flavor, including strawberry, curry, grass, and sardine. Not only that, but you discover that you are a wizard yourself! This is exactly what happens to young Harry Potter in J.K. Rowling's enchanting, funny debut novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. In the nonmagic human world--the world of "Muggles"--Harry is a nobody, treated like dirt by the aunt and uncle who begrudgingly inherited him when his parents were killed by the evil Voldemort. But in the world of wizards, small, skinny Harry is famous as a survivor of the wizard who tried to kill him. He is left only with a lightning-bolt scar on his forehead, curiously refined sensibilities, and a host of mysterious powers to remind him that he's quite, yes, altogether different from his aunt, uncle, and spoiled, piglike cousin Dudley.

A mysterious letter, delivered by the friendly giant Hagrid, wrenches Harry from his dreary, Muggle-ridden existence: "We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Of course, Uncle Vernon yells most unpleasantly, "I AM NOT PAYING FOR SOME CRACKPOT OLD FOOL TO TEACH HIM MAGIC TRICKS!" Soon enough, however, Harry finds himself at Hogwarts with his owl Hedwig... and that's where the real adventure--humorous, haunting, and suspenseful--begins.

My Review: 


This review is based on reading the book and then watching the movie. While the movie certainly allowed me to see things, instead of imagining it, it left a lot of parts out, such as the beginning of Harry Potter's days at the his aunt and uncle's house, Snape's room at underneath the school, and Harry and his friends giving the dragon to Ron's brother's friends, as well as many other small parts. 
First of all to find the book, I had to go to the young reader's section at Barne's and Noble, which made me hesitant and put off by this book. I figured that J.K Rowling's writing was geared to younger children, with little use of more difficult words. I was right, but that didn't make the book any less interesting or astounding. 
As I previously stated, I couldn't put the book down, I could see every move Harry made in my imagination, and felt nervous or frightened when Harry was in trouble. My favorite part was probably when Harry found out he was a Wizard, as well as the next parts in which he got his wand and all of the other essentials for Hogwarts. My least favorite part was the Quidditch Match, and I say this because I couldn't picture the game in my head. There was just too much going on and it was hard to keep track of. 
I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone wanting the kind of read that you can pair along with the movie. 


Sal and I will be reading each book, and when we both finish each one, we will watch the movie. Hopefully we'll be done by July, just in time for the second half of the last movie. 


My Rating: 5 stars.