Of all the books in recent memory, none have been more
successful or influential as J.K. Rowling’s debut novel, the first entry of the
saga of The Boy Who Lived: Harry Potter
and the Philosopher’s Stone. The book which begins the story of Harry
Potter is globally recognised as a tale filled with magic, humour and heart and
it will be difficult for any author to now make an impact on the literary and
non-literary world quite like Philosopher’s
Stone and its sequels. It will be surprising to find anyone who has not
read this book as it has become so widely iconic whether through its story, its
characters or even the cover design. The intrigue which Harry looks upon the
Hogwarts Express on my copy is similar to the millions who approached the novel
in the first few years of its existence before the story came to the big screen
and highly positive response follows a genuinely enjoyable reading experience.
The novel allows this through numerous factors: firstly the characters which
each have different personalities such as Harry’s bravery, Hermione’s
intelligence, Ron’s loyalty and Draco’s deception. The expanse of attributes
which these characters reach ensures that readers connect and associate with
them immediately and each are so well described and humanised with humour and
emotion that they become more than characters in a book but role models in
reality. Personally, I am grateful for Hermione who teaches that intelligence
and the pursuit of knowledge is rewarding and not to shy from. It is not just
the children who quickly gain celebrity status but the adults and teachers of
the books where names such as Dumbledore and Snape have achieved fame through
their equally well designed characters which project the wise and charismatic
headmaster and mysterious potions master from the pages into our minds. The
primary location for the novel additionally becomes a character in itself
as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and
Wizardry is a setting physically filled with magic from talking portraits to
three-headed dogs. Hogwarts is alive and its numerous secrets make it one of
the most difficult ‘characters’ to understand yet we want to delve further and
explore more, leading to our following the rest of the saga. The real reason
why this book and its sequels are such a success is for the escapism as like
Harry, we may be bored of the Muggle world yet nothing is more exciting than
the chance to live like a witch or wizard in a fun yet dangerous magical setting
and it is this joy that the story brings that encourages further re-readings as
the effect of this novel, above the rest in the series, is the most genuine
without the later plot complications and darker tones. Truly, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is
a truly magical reading experience and I am glad to have grown up with this
book as my Bible for the joy, excitement and role models it has given me.
No comments:
Post a Comment