Harry Potter was just an eleven-year-old orphan whose only place to call home was a cupboard under the stairs in his dreadful Aunt and Uncle’s house. Though he wasn’t treated as so, he was no ordinary boy. As an infant, he was the only being to ever survive the deadly powers of… dare I say his name… Lord Voldemort, who left an iconic lightning-shaped scar on Harry’s forehead—he is the boy who lived. After receiving a mysterious letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, his life changes forever as his true identity as a wizard can be fulfilled. In this school of potions, flying broomsticks, talking portraits, trolls, Quidditch, and more, adventure and treacherous mystery is encountered. But Harry and his friends knew there was something not right about one of their professors when they find something being viciously guarded inside the castle walls—something dangerous, yet very valuable that he must be out to get. And they are determined to find out what it is, even if it means risking their lives. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by the brilliant J.K. Rowling is the very start of the seven-novel millennial classic series that has been a thrilling escape for people of all ages.

Although they are all wizards, the characters are very real and relatable; you’ve probably met an amped-down Hermione or know someone very similar to Ron. Being told in a third-person narrative, their feelings are described in a way that is understandable. Their conflicts and adventures are exciting, yet ones you can be sensitive to; when Harry was angry with Snape, I was furious with Snape.
        
One of the most remarkable qualities of this book is was the way it was carefully and strategically written. As I read the book, I sometimes thought the details across the pages were just words. I shrugged them off and perceived them as tedious at times, not knowing quite how strenuously important they would become. Scholars call it “the book with no holes,” and they sure are right. Each detail, problem, or ounce of tension towards the beginning of the story was a brick, and those bricks kept adding and building higher until it all built a wall. Small details appear and loose ends are tied even later in the series! My suggestion for readers is to keep your eyes and mind wide open when reading this mysterious, fantastical, joyride. And don’t stop at the end.