Let's Take a Look

Well I did it. I read the first Harry Potter. It took me a little while because I wasn't very into it for some reason but I have to admit the end was good. I also appreciated the humor here and there as every good children's book should include. From Neville's missing toad to Ron's realism and Hagrid always saying too much, I can see why people enjoy reading about these characters. So here's my review....
I still think by nature, since you are dealing with witches and sorcery, kids need to be careful when reading and parents and kids should use discretion. Like anything anybody reads or watches, you should almost always look at it with care and a critiquing eye.
Now I have not ready any of the others and I do hear they get more dark as they progress and the characters get older, so if I do read the rest of them, I may have a different take on them.
For now, aside from some of the subject matter, I did not see a problem with this book. It was a lot like Halloween, and if kids are simply reading them for fun and nothing more, (much like dressing up and walking around for candy) it seems ok. I did even appreciate some of Rowling's writing and would like to include them here below.

"To one as young as you, I'm sure it seems incredible, but to Nicolas and Perenelle, it really is like going to bed after a very, very long day. After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure. You know, the Stone was really not such a wonderful thing. As much money and life as you could want! The two things most human beings would choose above all-the trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for them."

"It was one of those rare occasions when the true story is even more strange and exciting than the wild rumors."

" 'There are all kinds of courage,' said Dumbledoore, smiling. 'It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom.' "

-JK Rowling Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

I think my next book on the summer reading list is The Teacher's Funeral, A Comedy in Three Parts by Richard Peck. This should be interesting.