Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by J.K. Rowling (BOOK REVIEW)

 

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.”

Harry Potter has no idea how famous he is. That's because he's being raised by his miserable aunt and uncle who are terrified Harry will learn that he's really a wizard, just as his parents were. But everything changes when Harry is summoned to attend an infamous school for wizards, and he begins to discover some clues about his illustrious birthright. From the surprising way he is greeted by a lovable giant, to the unique curriculum and colorful faculty at his unusual school, Harry finds himself drawn deep inside a mystical world he never knew existed and closer to his own noble destiny.

“It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.”

I don't think I've ever prayed more about reading a book. This is definitely one of the most controversial books of all time for Christians. I'm so glad that the Lord has given me clarity about this book series and that I'm able to share with you all my personal thoughts about it.

It's so important to talk about things like this and for a very long time, anytime someone mentioned Harry Potter I immediately cringed and judged them for reading it. When I was younger my parents were very firm that our household would have nothing to do with Harry Potter. Young hearts and minds are very easily influenced and because of that, I'm grateful to my parents' wise decision regarding this. 

So, you may be wondering, "Ari, why did you read this book at all?". To be honest, I was very curious as to what exactly all of the talk around this series was. I got the first HP book on a whim at a thrift store for a very cheap price. I grabbed it knowing that I wasn't going to read the rest of the series because of how dark it gets. My mom and I had a conversation about it and I decided to give it a try and let the Holy Spirit guide me. I went into this book with prayer and a mature heart. I was ready to stop reading at any point if the Holy Spirit told me to. 

The main reason why this book is so controversial among Christian's is because of the very relevant theme of witchcraft throughout the book. Myself being a Christian, also detests any form of witchcraft and would never condone it in any way. Because of my more mature stance coming into this book, I knew that I wasn't allowing myself to become influenced or accustomed to the way that witchcraft is portrayed. This book series is written for children, and witches and wizards are painted as fun, frivolous and innocent. I believe that giving a book like this to young children and letting them consume witchcraft in that way can be very dangerous. Like I said before, young children are constantly consuming everything around them and it shapes their character. Things that are evil can become normal because they become used to it. 

A lot of people use the argument, "Well, there are witches and wizards in The Lord of the Rings, and even Elsa from Frozen could be considered a witch." Yes. I think that we as Christian's need to determine why we let other kinds of magic, that aren't necessarily labeled as witchcraft, slide. Where is the line going to be drawn? Thought I will say I disagree with the argument about The Lord of the Rings. When you dive into the author, J.R.R Tolkien's, personal life, you know that the magic and wizardry in his books are very symbolic towards the Christian faith; just like C.S. Lewis', Chronicles of Narnia. 

It's dangerous when you obsess with things like this. It's dangerous when you obsess with anything other than Jesus. He should be the one thing that we're constantly thinking about and talking about. When fans of Harry Potter start memorizing the spells and dressing up, that's when it becomes an idol. I think what my parents saw with this series, is the cult surrounding it. I know that tons of people worship this series and become fixated on it. Young kids especially and that's why it can become a very disturbing problem. Any book series can be dangerous when we put it on a high pedestal in our heart. It doesn't have to have witchcraft in it to be sinful. That's why we need the Holy Spirit to guide us through everything.  We need to make sure that our spirits are sensitive to the things that we are consuming and letting into our hearts. 

"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it."- Proverbs 4:23

With all of this being said, I still did enjoy a lot of things about this book. Like I said I didn't read the entire series nor do I plan to. I know for a fact that the rest of the series gets very dark, but the first one can most definitely be read as a standalone. I think that I was expecting a lot more of the bad than the good. There was some symbolism that was surprisingly quite moral. The story was cute and enjoyable.  I did enjoy myself while reading it. Obviously it's fantasy, so I feel like I was able to take all of the magic and stuff like I would with any other fiction book. The friendship and adventure was really sweet, and I enjoyed the humor and the characters. This book definitely had cozy vibes. The autumn and Christmas setting was so enjoyable. Everything was very quirky and twisty. I have to say, the plot twist got me! Even the theme of witches and wizards was kinda cheesy. Everything regarding that side of the story is so stereotypical that it was honestly just silly to me. But, I think that's a good thing. For younger kids they wouldn't find it cringe, which supports the previous points I made. 

All in all, did I enjoy this book? Yes, I did. I had a lot of fun reading this book. I liked the story-line, the writing was good, the humor was spectacular and I think that there were a lot of great moral lessons consisting of friendship and honor. It's very tricky with a book like this and I think I've made my point very clear about what kind of vulnerability level you should have with this book. In the end, listen to the Holy Spirit for any book that you read! Guard your heart, and pray about anything and everything.

“One can never have enough socks," said Dumbledore. "Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn't get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books.”

I give this book a 6 out of 10 and recommend it to ages 14+ (I'm just saying 14 because that's how old I was when I read it. Ultimately I think that it's up to your parents and maturity level.)

PRESS HERE to purchase this book. 

Happy Reading! -Ariana :)