Series Introduction
In this occasional series, I will be discussing books that a teenage girl (now a fourteen-year-old), Jonelle, invited me to read. And when I say "invited me to read," of course I mean "commanded me to read." For those of you who don't know her, she is a highly intelligent, sweet, precocious and fairly bossy young lady.
A large part of the reason why I read this book, and the other works that will be discussed in this blog series, is that I want to understand how teenagers think. These posts will not be a review of the book per se as much as an exploration of my random thoughts on the book.
How did I get myself into this?
***
…, and then, at last—
“Potter, Harry!”
As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.
“Potter, did she say?”
“The Harry Potter?”
The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.
“Hmm,” said a small voice in his ear. “Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There’s talent, oh my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that’s interesting… So where shall I put you?”
Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin.
“Not Slytherin, eh?” said the small voice. “Are you sure? You could be great, you know, its all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that — no? Well, if you’re sure — better be GRYFFINDOR!”
***
Books Jonelle Made Me Read **Special Edition**
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (1998) by J. K. Rowling.
Old Sins Cast Long Shadows is very pleased to announce that this episode of "Books Jonelle Made Me Read" is a **Special Edition** namely that Jessica made me read Harry Potter!
Jessica is another young lady (in her early twenties) who is far to smart for her own good! Not only did she make me read bloody Harry Potter, she gloated about it, too![i]
"I have been insisting for a very long time that Mr. Shiraishi take on the Harry Potter series. When I found out that he was doing a set of ongoing posts about books Jonelle asked (forced) him to read, I only became more motivated and insistent, asking (harassing) him every chance I got. "
*
Apart from this first Harry Potter book, I have neither read any of the novels nor seen any of the movies. I come to this entirely unprejudiced; except for the fact that I am older and bitter. I must be honest, however, I was fully prepared to allow my curmudgeonly self to pooh-pooh the whole thing.
However, to my great surprise, I liked it.[ii]
*
The first volume in this septology by J. K. Rowling was published in the U.K. in 1997 as Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. It was then published in the U.S. in 1998 under the slightly different Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. The reasons for this difference and accompanying references are included in this Wikipedia article (link).
As an introduction to Rowling's Potter-verse, this volume succeeds admirably. The setting is, at the same time, both strange and familiar. I am relieved that Jessica agrees.
"This book . . . presents a wonderful introduction to Harry's new world. We get to experience his childlike wonder along with him during each new revelation, and feel his happiness as he discovers a place and a group of people that feel like a true home."
But Jessica has a markedly different emotional connection to the novels than I do. Coming to this work in my late middle age, I see Harry Potter as a charming children's story which addresses a few mature topics. For Jessica,
"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is the book with which I really learned to read. I remember enjoying bedtime as a young child, waiting to find out what would happen in the next chapter and enjoying the silly voices my dad would use for the more colorful characters, Hagrid in particular."
I have no such connection.
*
What follows is a collection of thoughts and impressions of this work interspersed with related comments from Jessica.
*
I believe that the character of Harry Potter is written as an archetypal "hero" figure; very loosely along the lines of the character of Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars Prequel trilogy. Both share aspects of the "hero" in common; both have mysterious origins; both share an extreme aptitude for flying. As well, both characters share a Cinderella-esque upbringing; initially serving as slave-servant to the greedy and unworthy. All this and more put me in mind of Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Of those who have pondered Rowling's Harry Potter writings, some have noted how closely her works fit into Campbell's "hero" myth. I have been unable to find any instance where Rowling either confirmed or denied that she used Campbell's myth figure as inspiration or indeed, that she even ever read The Hero with a Thousand Faces.[iii] [iv]
In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, when the story really begins, Harry is a boy of 11 years. It seems to me that this book's intended audience was meant to be boys and girls of around 11 years of age – just like Harry. Despite being younger than 11 at the time of her introduction to the novels, the impact they had were equally profound on a young Jessica; the effects reaching into her adult life even to today.
"As a child I remember reveling in the descriptions of the castle, the common room, Quidditch, the magic spells, and of course, the feasts. As an adult, I think this is one of the books that I enjoy more for its nostalgic appeal, but every time I re-read it, I continue to experience the excitement of knowing that I am about to embark on an epic adventure."
So, it occurred to me to wonder as the series progresses, will the writing progress as well? By this, I mean will the writing evolve from appealing to a child, to a teenager and, later still, from a teenager to an adult, as Harry himself grows? I am also curious to see whether Harry ages as each book is published. So, if there is a two year gap between the publication of one volume and the next, will Harry have aged two years as well?
As is typical with much YA (Young Adult) fiction, there are moral / ethical truisms presented within the story. For example, in the case of The Sorcerer's Stone, I believe the principal teachings striving to be reinforced are:
- stand with your friends and support them. Harry, Hermione and Ron stand with each other.
- don't judge a book by its cover. A harsh and unpleasant person may have a strong sense of honor (Snape); while a quiet, unpresuming figure may harbor the essence of a dark lord (Quirrell).
*
"Harry Potter, to me, is a best friend with whom you can immediately re-connect and be transported to the time when you were eagerly awaiting the next installment or devouring every detail of the wizarding world. This is always true for me no matter how many years go by, and sharing it with others brings me joy."
I have picked up the second and third volumes, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I will tackle these two works together when I post my follow-up. I find it very interesting to note that there is a near doubling in size of the Harry Potter books following Azkaban. It is as if something happened between the third and fourth books that warranted such a change in size. We shall see.
I look forward to returning to my exploration of the Potter-verse in the future.
"I am endlessly excited that Mr. Shiraishi has started this series, and I'm looking forward to re-living the experience of Harry Potter through the eyes of a first time reader."
**
References
Print Resources
Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. New York: Scholastic Press, 1998.
Digital Resources
Online Resources
A correspondence from Jessica to Old Sins. Facebook Private Message. March 25, 2017.
MSN.com. Fry, Stephen, interviewer: J.K. Rowling at the Royal Albert Hall, 26 June 2003. Accessed 20 April 2017
http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2003/0626-alberthall-fry.htm
Wikipedia. "Harry Potter."
Accessed 11 April 2017.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter
Wikipedia. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone."
Accessed 11 April 2017.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Philosopher%27s_Stone
Wikipedia. "The Hero with a Thousand Faces."
Accessed 14 April 2017.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero_with_a_Thousand_Faces
[i] All quotations in this blog post are from Jessica, taken from a Private Message to me dated 25 March 2017.
[ii] No one was more surprised than myself. Jessica is going to be insufferable.
[iii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero_with_a_Thousand_Faces
[iv] Though I will wait to experience and consider a few more volumes before I decide whether to comment on this point as an apt connection to make or not.
Now you have to watch the movie :)
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