Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

4/5 Stars

This book has still got it. It still feels just as magical and adventurous as it did when I last read it (11 years ago).

There isn't much that I remember from the first time I read this, but I do remember being completely blown away by the world that is Hogwarts. From the spells, the Devils Snare, Quidditch, Platform Nine and Three Quarters, The Sorting Hat, Diagon Alley, the list goes on; everything about this series is mystifying and continues to be mystifying even when I read it as an adult. I didn't think I'd like it as much as I did when I was little because essentially the story focuses on an eleven year old boy who finds out he can go to a school for wizards. It sounded a bit juvenile for me to be reading at the ripe age of 19 but alas it is still mind blowingly awesome.

In regards to the ending: I did not expect that at all when I originally read it and even as I reread it I still had no idea.

Something that rereading this book also reminded me of was how amazingly well the movies were cast. I mean come on, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger: the overachieving young scholar who is uptight but somehow ends up becoming a friend. I don't remember the actors name who played Ron but just visualize, Ron Weasley: the boy who has little money but who has an abundance of family and loyalty to his friends to make up for it. And then finally Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter: the boy who starts out sleeping in a closet and ends up being a hero. Harry is kind to those that deserve it, fearless when it counts the most, and wonderfully intelligent. Their movie counterparts where just *chefs kiss*.

I really hate saying this because as a member of the literary community I do not claim J.K. Rowling because of her transphobic mentality, BUT I have to give her props. She is such an amazing writer. The Harry Potter series originated as children's novels and with time, they progressed into the YA genre. Her writing no matter the target audience remains unparalleled. Let me also note that J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter while she was HOMELESS. She wrote this shit in a coffee shop somewhere in England and then faced enormous amounts of rejection before it got published. Now she has 8 film adaptations, an amusement park at Universal Studios in Florida, and continues to sell millions of copies. I keep trying to tell myself I hate her and refuse to support her, but she has so much merit I can't.

I wasn't even aware of the debate between Twilight and Harry Potter, but not that I have read the Twilight novels, Twilight fans riddle me this:

Try to tell me that Twilight is better.

Tell me that James is scarier than Voldemort.

That the Cullens are a better family than the Weasleys.

That Edward is cooler than Harry.

and Bella is smarter than Hermione.

And finally, tell me that Stephanie Meyer is more talented than J.K. Rowling.

Oh wait, you can't.

To conclude, here is my favorite quote from Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone:

"But from that moment on, Hermione Granger became their friend. 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."