Trip Down Diagon Ally

 

Trip Down Diagon Alley 

I’ve been revisiting a very loved series from my childhood that’s filled with whimsical spells and crazy adventures; Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling.

 When you rewatch or reread a movie or book from when you were younger you are hit with a whirlwind of crazy feelings and nostalgia, you are transported to being a kid again. The Harry Potter series is truly just as wonderful as you might remember it, it’s the perfect ratio of fun and exciting, mixed with grave situations and more serious emotion. Also after revisiting these books, it really blows my mind, the books were very interesting to me when I was a lot younger and they do the exact same thing to an older version of myself. So I thought I would give you a small review on the first three books. 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone:

This book is very light, quite an easy read, and exceedingly captivating. It has so much world-building, and for someone who sometimes has a hard time envisioning scenes or settings, this felt like a movie playing in my head. One of the most wonderful parts of the book was when Harry finds out he’s a wizard. I really can feel how joyful he is, but on the other hand, I can also feel how upset he is at his Aunt and Uncle for lying to him for so long. This book is an amazing way to start the series and really helps open the Wizarding World to the reader. 

(SPOILERS) I also wanted to give a little more context to the many of you who have read or watched this series. One of the big moments I remember is when Harry rode his broom for the first time. The reason I think this part is so important is because of how many times where the reader can connect to the fantasy universe. When Harry first rides his broom could connect to riding a bike for the first time, when Draco Malfoy is bullying Neville Longbottom and Harry stands up for him could connect to standing up to a bully for the first time, and finally when Professor McGonagall catches Harry riding his broom could relate to getting in trouble from parents or a teacher. My point is that this scene is small but still super impactful. Another thing is how much I love Hermione’s character. The author, J. K. Rowling, is able to make a great, strong, and smart female character. Then of course the final scene where Harry is fighting Professor Quirrell and Voldemort is quite nerve-racking but obviously Harry is able to win the battle with help from his friends. 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets:

This book is fairly similar to the first book in length and level. This book was also phenomenal but in my opinion I think I had  more fun with the first book, and the truth is I’m not sure why. But! Some of the things I like in this book are the amount of history we get to learn about Hogwarts, there’s a lot of great scenes where it feels like reading a really really fun history book about this school. I also enjoyed getting to see the characters mature, this is not only for this book but for the whole series. In a fun way, it feels like you grow with the characters. (SPOILERS) Now for this book, I really love the way we almost get to see a completely different side of Harry. In the first book everyone is staring and obsessing over Harry, but in this book we get to see people constantly avoiding him and being too afraid to even talk to him because they think he is the Heir of Slytherin due to his parseltongue. Again this ending is so so so cool, I will never forget reading it. Just the way the mystery lays itself out so beautifully is just wonderful and then the part where Harry is battling the basilisk is fantastic action. Another memorable part of the story is when Harry starts to doubt he’s really a Gryffindor due to everything happening and in the first book where the Sorting Hat says he would be a good fit in Slytherin. Maybe this connects to the first day of school nerves, or wondering where you belong. Harry is obviously worried that he and Voldemort share too many similarities, but when he pulls the sword out of the hat, he doesn’t realize yet but he pulled the Sword of Gryffindor which only true Gryffindors can pull out. Then when Professor Dumbledore says, yes, you and Voldemort are similar but Harry did something that Voldemort could never do, which was choose to be in Gryffindor. It’s very sweet and feels like a parent is reassuring a kid. 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban:

Not to start arguments but this might be my favorite out of these three. This book is a little longer than the others and also has similar difficulty. Now in case you're wondering why it’s my favorite, that’s because I feel like out of all the books this one has the most exciting plot line and character development. In this book, it’s Harry’s third year so he’s now very familiar with the school. 

(SPOILERS) The reason why I love this book so much is because of Sirius Black, I love the whole mystery. I find it so sweet how Harry finally finds family and feels appreciated by family, since all he’s ever known is resentment. Sirius also has almost a different tone or voice when he’s talking to Harry, I can immediately tell how much he cares for Harry. The whole confusion with Peter Pettigrew and Sirius makes the moment even sweeter, I just absolutely love the whole ending. I also really enjoyed all of the characters, whereas in the 2nd book I hated the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart, but in this book I love Remus Lupin, who has the same position. All in all I really love this book.

Anyway after all is said and done, I’m really happy you read my book report and hopefully enjoyed it! I love the Harry Potter series and I hope this either sparked you to want to read it or if you also love Harry Potter enjoyed my view of the books.  

-Eva Gleason