book 1 of Harry Potter

by J. K. Rowling

isbn: 0590353403
subject: SF, Fiction and Literature, Children's Books
finished: 1/8/2000

Harry Potter is raised by his muggle (non-magical) aunt and uncle who don't like him, and who never approved of his witch and wizard parents -- magic got them killed, after all. So they hide his past from him, and Harry is as surprised as anyone when he's invited to attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He turns out to be a natural at magic, but this by no means assures his success -- some of the other kids have it out for him, and there are some sinister forces at work behind the scenes at Hogwarts.

I picked up this book to see if it lived up to all the hype. I think it does; it's one of those rare children's books that will be in print a couple of decades from now. Still, I wouldn't say that it has the moral or philosophical weight of the Narnia books or of A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels -- Harry Potter is pure entertainment.