Rowling is a Genius (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J. K. Rowling)

Member Name: Cwej1

Product:	Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J. K. Rowling
Date:	17/11/01 (23 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Strong characterisation, Gripping plot

Disadvantages: Sometimes lacking in substance for an adult perhaps

I know that this is perhaps one of the most over-reviewed books on the website, but having been one of the pessimists that assumed I wouldn't enjoy Harry Potter, I feel it is a duty of mine to write this review and explain how much my opinion has changed.

Approaching the book with trepidation and a high degree of cynicism, I began reading it, on the advice of a good friend. I told her there was no point - it didn't appeal to me. I wouldn't enjoy it. But slowly as I progressed through the 227 pages of this novel I realised just how wrong I was.

JK Rowling has created a world where the perfectly normal is paralleled in such an inventive and unnatural way, that the sheer weirdness makes it believable. The intricate descriptions of fictional things such as the Wizard's equivalent of football, Quidditch, the replacements for Maths, English and Science: Charms, History of Magic, Herbology and Transfiguration, are so well thought out that you believe there really is a secret world hundreds of miles below the London Underground.

The characters are somewhat stereotypes, as in most children's novels, but they are intelligently designed so that they aren't totally transparent to an adult reader. Strangely enough, the character of Harry is actually one of the least interesting in the book. Far more interesting are his repulsive uncle and aunt, the hilarious Hermione, the gentle giant Hagrid and the teachers, Dumbledore, Snape and the rest of them.

And now onto the plot. The novel is surprisingly enough a thriller, in the most typical sense of the word. Clues are revealed expertly by Rowling's strong sense of pace and the story builds up to a strong climax in which Harry, Hermione and Ron are plunged into a dangerous and daring nighttime expedition... I won't say any more for fear of ruining the story.

I have always found books very difficult to review because it as a reader who dislikes knowing the st
oryline before I read a book, I tend not to reveal very much at all in my reviews. So if you find this review unhelpful I apologise. But I hope the point I am aiming to get across in this review is clear: DON'T WRITE HARRY POTTER OFF without giving it a go first. I nearly did - and I'm so glad I forced myself to journey into Rowling's funny, intelligent, fantasy-based world. Now to Harry's Chamber of Secrets I go... ;)

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