Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J. K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
Genre: Youth Fantasy
Form: Audio Book
Series: Harry Potter

No, I have never read the Harry Potter books. Yes, I do realize I'm years and years behind every one. I have seen the movies, and really like them, so I decided to give the audio books a try. And since everyone in their brother has read the Harry Potter books, I'm going to try something new this time around. I've been debating about whether to write my own summaries to the books I read, or continue to use what is published on the back of the book or what's on the Barnes and Noble website. I'm not sure if anyone pays attention or cares - but I am always vague in my reviews because I'm trying very hard not to give anything away. I want to write down my opinion of the books I read or listen too, but I don't want to ruin it for anyone else. This is often hard when I get to the part where I want to tell people what my favorite part of the book way, because often my favorite part is the pivotal part in the book or the surprise twist. Anyhow, for the next few books I'm going to take a stab at writing my own summary and then my review. If I feel it's going well, I will continue in this method. If I don't like it, then I'll just do things as I've always done them.

So back to the review..er summary:

Harry Potter has lived with his Aunt, Uncle, and very spoiled cousin, Dudley ever since he was a baby. He was delivered to them after his parents died in what he was told was a car accident. All his life he has been treated as a second class citizen, never truly feeling like he belongs. Now, 11 years later, Harry's life is about to make a drastic change.

In just a matter of days, Harry finds himself swept off to a school for meant for Wizards and Witches. Apprehensive at first, Harry soon finds out that he is not only famous among this world of magic, but he also finds himself right at home after years of feeling an outsider. In his first year at Hogwarts School of Magic, Harry makes new friends, new enemies and begins to learn about his destiny.

When comparing the difference between books, and the movies that have been made from books - most of the time I would say the book is most certainly better than the movie (Twilight, for example). On rare occasion I might say that the movie was actually better than the book (Confessions of a Shopaholic). But in this instance, I will say that the book and the movie were almost 100% word-for-word, the same. And seeing as how I liked the movie a lot, this was actually a good thing - just a little surprising!

I have read many young adult books, but this is the first time in a really long time that I've read anything that is focused more towards youths or preteens. I actually did borrow this book from the library once, and mostly because the book was extremely easy to read and really did feel juvenile to me, I did not finish it, but getting the audio book was a winner for me. I listen to these books at work - while I'm working (big surprise huh?). So the fact that the book was an "easy read" actually worked out well. I didn't have to concentrate too hard to keep up with the book. So I'm happy to be able to finally add the Harry Potter books to my "read" list.

I think my favorite part of The Sorcerer's Stone is when Hermione covers for Harry and Ron after they save her from a troll, and their friendship is officially forged. I think both Harry and Ron learned a very important lesson about just how much words can hurt a person. Of course, in real life, hopefully it wouldn't be such a dangerous lesson.

All in all, I loved the beginning of this saga. You meet many of the important characters, you learn about the world of magic, and some of it's ups and downs. It's a perfect beginning to what I already know is a wonderful series.