Book Review

Okay, so the only review I ever wrote of the Harry Potter books was a review for the entire set. I've never reviewed them one by one and since I'm re-reading the series for the first time in a few years, I thought I'd give a go at reviewing them one by one. If you're one of the few people in the world who haven't read it, beware of some spoilers.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The first book is everything the first in a series should be. It's simple and doesn't overwhelm the reader with too much information and doesn't give too much away. However, it also has a definite ending that wraps up the events of the book and that's very important because endless loose ends can lead to disappointment. Yes, he'll be coming back for another year at the school, but there won't be a Sorcerer's Stone to worry about anymore, or a three headed dog, or the antagonist that was doing the bidding of the Dark Lord. It's like a catchy song that is easy to memorize but that has many layers of meaning if you listen to it over and over. Since it's the first of seven books, and Rowling had planned seven from the beginning, the underlying story moves very slow and only the skeleton is presented - there is a Dark Lord and a boy who is destined to destroy him one day. They have a brief encounter at the end, but it's only a teaser since the boy is too young and the Dark Lord is mostly helpless at this point. But the book is hardly empty otherwise. It begins to build the world that envelops the underlying story, and it's one of the most original "hidden worlds" created in the last 25 years.  Instead of the notion of magic (spells, potions, creatures) taking place in ancient times or distant, fictional lands, it takes place in modern day London without losing any of the charm of fantasy as presented in those long ago and/or far away worlds. A lot of what goes on is simply exploring a very different kind of private boarding school that essentially is a medieval setting and seeing how this hidden world coexists with the normal world around it. The characters are real, complex, and easy to relate to... nobody is perfectly good or perfectly bad even in the short space of one book.  I've said myself that everyone in the book is someone that you probably knew growing up in one form or another and it can touch the reader on a more personal level than the great heroes of Tolkien or even Narnia. The maturity levels match the ages of the characters that range from 10 to 17 with the children and each has a distinct personality even if the character is only on the peripheries. The adults are developed as well which delivers endless viewpoints to consider without it seeming like a lesson is being taught and the interaction of all the characters is something that everyone of all ages can identify with.  Then there's the fantasy material itself. The linguistic and cultural influences are noticeable. The choice of Latin for spell incantations is inspired. The borrowed fantasy elements, like centaurs and trolls, follow the "rules" that had been laid down for them from tales of old, while the original elements like Diagon Alley, Gringotts, and Quidditch are creatively painted in the picture of the mind. All of it makes for clever misdirection that leads to genuine surprises in the relatively simple plot for this particular book. And the ending sequence of events being set up in an obstacle course style was a great way to summarize the new world that was created and incorporate many different elements at once.
Even though this book was designed to be a series, there's still a "first book" feel to Sorcerer's Stone that sets it apart.  The title for one thing.  The Philosopher's Stone is what it was originally called and that's what the object that the real ancient alchemists were actually looking for was called. That name and many other things were changed for an American audience. Also things like the use of the word "soccer." I don't think anyone in Europe calls soccer "soccer." They call it football. The characters didn't talk with a lot of the British slang worked into their dialogue either. This would change later on as the books gained a wider audience.  It's story also stands somewhat alone and apart from the rest of the series (as does the second book) even though little details that begin in this first book are eventually tied together with everything else by the end of the series.
The only thing I didn't like about it was the original artwork for the books.  There was a different artist after the third book and there was some improvement, but not much. But that's just aesthetics. Don't let it stop you from reading the start of a brilliant and original series.