“There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other, and knocking out a twelve-foot mountain troll is one of them.”
(Warning: This post may contain spoilers and it is an HONEST review so please, if you are in the middle of the book or if you are a fan and love everything about this book, do not read.)
What's It About: After a couple by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Potter die in a car crash they leave behind a baby boy gifted the name of Harry Potter who has been adopted by his dreadful aunt and uncle. He goes through eleven painful years of life without a proper Christmas, birthday and every other holiday you can think of, until one day Harry gets a letter accepting him into Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Where up until now, Harry has known none of his life and will about to go on an adventure of a life time battling against dark forces, trolls, bullies, a malignant aunt and uncle and also an enemy that has been after Harry his whole life.
Harry Potter was released in the United States in 1998 which coincidentally was the same year I was born, and if there was any book that had to be re-published in my birth year I'm sure glad it was this one. I haven't read Harry Potter until this year, I know I know. How is that even possible?
See, I wasn't really a huge fan of wizards, witches and all the magic stuff. It had been too overdone for me. Everyone was writing about spells, potions, inanimate objects and blah blah blah but that was my fault for putting fantasy in that stereotypical box in the first place. You can do whatever in fantasy meaning goblins can be different for anyone, trolls aren't always under bridges and wizards aren't all dressed in cloaks and pointy hats.
I was contemplating not even reviewing this book because of how popular it is and usually people don't tear down or build up books that already have an enormous following but I came to the conclusion that the job of a review blog is to put my honest thoughts out to read.
When I opened this book up I was instantly grateful to Ms. Rowling for making the genre of fantasy her own. For creating her own memorable characters like Harry, Hagrid, Dudley, Dumbledore etc. She was so in touch with her characters which is something I absolutely look for in every book I read. She knew them in and out, she knew them like they were her own children. Not only did she know her characters, but she knew the wizarding world like the back of her hand.
I got so attached to Harry within the first few pages. He was very easy to get attached to which I know will be a curse the further along I read through the series. I found it relatively easy to get attached to most of the characters except for Hermione. I don't know if it was because she was a stereotypical know it all or just not my type of character.
Speaking of characters, there were a ton. There were memorable ones (Harry, Hermonie, Ron, The Weasley brothers, Hagrid etc.....) Then there were others that nearly played just stand ins (Crabbe, Goyle and the ghosts) that made it confusing to remember all their names considering we just met all of these characters and it is the first book.
I'm the type of person who likes a lot of description. Which I think Harry Potter lacked. Everything just was told very simply. Hogwarts barely had any description at all. At first sight all it says is, "Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood." We know that it's a large castle that was tall and it was built on a cliff. Description for me as an author is key but I also understand if the author purposely does this in order for the reader to gain creativity and to make up whatever they imagine it looks like. I do believe there is a good middle though, where the author can be descriptive but the readers can also toss in their own creativity.
I do believe that J.K. Rowling has written one of the most significant books of this generation and I hope this book stays around forever because not only is it a land of make believe but it has the perfect ounce of real life too.
Extra Thoughts:
Favorite Character: My favorite character has been without a doubt Harry Potter. He's one of those character that you would love to sit down and have a cup of tea with and just talk about grand adventures, small adventures and life goals. He's an all around well developed character and I just loved his bravery, humbleness and energy.
Favorite Scene/Chapter: Out of all these great chapters, mine would have to be Chapter Fifteen, The Forbidden Forest. If there's anything I like in Fantasy books it's the forests. Anything can live in a forest and I, personally, love to see what the author has hiding in the forest and in J.K. Rowling's case it was the main antagonist and some centaurs and unicorns.
Least Favorite Part of the Book: The only part I really can name my least favorite part was the beginning. It was really slow and drab. I wasn't expecting for the beginning to drag on but the rest of the book made up for it.
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