re-read : harry potter and the philosopher's stone

I was so, so excited when my Bibliomaniacs book group decided to do a Harry Potter readathon. I haven't read the series in seven years, and i deeply miss reading the books. I've heard that reading the books as an adult gives a different experience compared to reading it as a child, and so i wanted to see how that was. In this review i'll mostly review my experience rereading the book.

I'm actually quite shocked to discover that a lot of people out there still have not read the Harry Potter series. I'm sure most have at least watched the movies, but i honestly think they are still missing out. For the last seven years, i've only been watching the movies because i've read all the books a few times before that. So when i started reading the first book again, i realised that there's so much depth in the books that is difficult to be displayed in the movies. It compliments the story perfectly when you have experienced both adaptations.

Being a much older and a much more matured reader, it was easier to appreciate every detail of the book. As a child, the details didn't seem too important to pay attention to. Sometimes i didn't even understand what i was reading, maybe because the language was a little difficult for me at that age. Now, it's as easy as reading any other book. In fact, it's even easier, because i've watched the movies. I loved the characters and the concept of the wizarding world the most when i was a kid. But rereading it now, I'm able to empathize the characters a lot differently. I noticed the emotional descriptions more, which was absolutely fantastic.

My favourite character in this book is Harry. It's always been Hermione, but after the reread i realised how great Harry actually is. The way that he was so used to being treated so horribly, to the point where he always braced himself for the worst every time something might have gone wrong. The way he appreciated every wonderful moment, all the magical things. How mature and humble he was for an eleven year old boy. There were some understandably kiddish moments too, which were really fun to read about. I felt like a kid again myself.

I also loved Ron and Neville.These characters are just so great, and so entertaining to read about. There was a paragraph where Ron told Harry about where he stood in his family. He was the fifth child, and so all his brothers have achieved everything already, so it was difficult to get much attention from his family. I couldn't relate to him, but i could empathize. I love that there were a lot of different kinds of characters being introduced even from the first book. I think it was hard to remember all the characters when i read it for the first time long ago, but now it's great to know who everyone was, and what role they would be playing in the other books.

I can finally appreciate how brilliant JK Rowling's writing is. From the very first page, I could see her own identity in the way she writes. There was humour and character in it. I don't think i've read that kind of writing except in Harry Potter. I loved it! I could hear this voice narrating in my head, in a very amusing tone. And because i've watched the movie countless of times, the actors' voices automatically played in my mind when i read the dialogues. I was amazed at how the movie had kept true to the book. I would say that 90% of the movie was similar to the book, which i truly appreciated.

Weirdly enough, the book was only about 220 pages thick. I was a little blown away when i realised that Rowling had fit that entire story in such a thin book. She had built an entire wizarding world, and this thin children's book had been a life-changing story for millions of people. I don't think it's as complex as the last few books, but it definitely is strategic because of that. As the readers keep reading more, they grow with the characters as well, and mature along with them.

This is a rather short review, i think it's because it's a reread so i'm mostly writing about my experience and thoughts after rereading it again, rather than for the first time.