Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Written 2.15.06

Reader Response to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling

Prologue:
I love her. I remember the first time i read this book. i started and i couldn't put it down. I was 1/2 way through when i went out and bought all the other books. what I love about Rowling is that her story is a great escape- but bundled up in it are complex characters and political issues. I've read The Sorcerer's Stone about 4 times (I re-read the previous books before starting the next one). It'll be interesting to read again and see what I can find. I would really like to find copies of the British versions- those NOT owned and bastardized by Warner Bros.

1. Hooks me in the 1st sentence.

2. "The dull, gray tuesday our story starts." I love that. I love to start stories.... "It all began on a Wednesday."
-Chortled-

3. I love the Durselys. They're such judgemental, shallow assholes. They're the kind of characters that readers love to hate.

8. Dumbledore's entrance. Breathtaking. I love the half-moon spectacles. My great-grampa used to wear spectacles. they'd call him "Specs."

10. I've read through #6... I'm catching names that are mentioned later.

12. TONS of Christian imagery in this book!

22. Mrs. Figg!!

23. "He wasn't really crying- but he knew that if he screwed up his face and wailed, his mother would give him anything he wanted." Yet another great reason to never have kids. They're manipulative and sneaky- but i guess it's all in how you raise them. Hopefully mine won't turn out that way... they'll be my unholy minions of the night! Soon. SOON WE SHALL TAKE OVER THE WORLD!!
-Piers is left out of the movies- thank God for that.

27. Parseltongue.

40. Uncle Vernon's going crazy.

51. love Hagrid. She writes him with an accent... similar to twain's style. love that.
from L. rubeus, related to ruber "red."
Source: http://www.etymonline.com/

53. Petunia and Lily. I never realized they both have flower names. I'll have to look up the meaning/symbolism for each.

lily
O.E. lilie, from L. lilia, pl. of lilium "a lily," cognate with Gk. leirion, both perhaps borrowed from a corrupted pronunciation of an Egyptian word. Used in O.T. to translate Heb. shoshanna and in N.T. to translate Gk. krinon. The color sense of "pale, bloodless" led to lily-livered "cowardly" (1605, in "Macbeth;" see liver; the healthy liver is typically dark reddish-brown). The lily of the valley translates L. lilium convallium (Vulgate), a literal rendition of the Heb. term in Song of Solomon ii.1. It apparently was applied to a particular plant (Convallaria majalis) first by 16c. Ger. herbalists.

petunia
1825, from Mod.L. Petunia (1789), from Fr. petun, an obs. word for "tobacco plant," from Port. petum, from Guarani (Paraguay) pety. It has a botanical affinity to the tobacco plant. Pety first recorded (in Ger.) as bittin; it survives as the regular word for tobacco only in Breton butun, but it was in use in Eng. in 17c.

Source:
http://www.etymonline.com/

54. she writes in a very mysterious manner. you don't really see her twist coming- but i'll be sure to look for it this time.

59. What I also love is her dialog- they didn't have to change much for the movie.
-she sets us up to be curious about why Hagrid can't do magic- and answers it in book 2.

63. foreshadowing

68. "The old bartender, who was quite bald and looked like a toothless walnut." LMFAO

69. I'm reading familiar names here- Deadalus Diggle.

71. She could have described the gateway's opening a little more/better.

72. She uses song and poetry a lot in her writing- but they don't use it in the movies. i really like the poetry.

73. Dog biscuts-- Fluffy

77. Malfoy

84. I wish the whole wand scene would have been in the movie.

107. "Harry was wondering what a wizard did once he'd finished school." I wonder, too. Will Rowling stop with the 7th book? I sincerely hope not.

120. The sorting ceremony drags a little.

130. Foreshadowing.

131. Poor Harry. He's at a time in his life where he just wants to be like everyone else. It sucks. you're a unique individual, just like everyone else.
-I think that Rowling's writing improves substantially through her writing of the next 5 books. I had to use a dictionary while reading the 6th book because I had NO idea what some of the words meant.
-this book reads really fast (i are a english major)

136. Snape is a perfect red herring, but I don't know what to make of him and his actions in the 6th book. there is such a rich history behind her characters.

snape (v.)
"to be hard upon, rebuke, snub," c.1300, from O.N. sneypa "to outrage, dishonor, disgrace."
Source: http://www.etymonline.com/

-even though her description seems remedial at some points, it gets the job done.

137. foreshadowing for this or some other book.

154. wow. i don't remember them being so rude to hermione.

178. "It was as if Snape had started handing out sweets." LMFAO. we know the character well enough at this point to know that this is completely antithetical to his nature.

211. I really hope Ron is made Head boy and quidditch captain.

236. Norbert is the dragon Harry faces in the 4th book.

Final Summation:

love this series. would use it in my future classroom. it's not the feel good story of the year... because you actually feel for the characters... and there are so many of them... it's hard to keep track of all the history and story telling involved.... rowling is very similar to tolkien in this light.... and i think that comparing and contrasting gandalf and dumbledore would be a cool idea. not only is this a great story.... but it goes on to turn into something RESPLENDENT. there are political issues, gender issues, race issues, issues with lookism... and on top of that.... it builds vocabulary! KICKASS!