Thrifty Mango Book Club: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

It does not do well to dwell on dreams and forget to live

Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

The Harry Potter series has become a staple of this generation; if you haven’t read the books then you’ve watched a few of the films at least. I’ve wanted to revisit the books for quite some time now. I read all the books twice throughout my school years but haven’t touched them since. I have an embarrassing amount of Harry Potter Merchandise, including Luna Lovegood’s wand, a Hufflepuff hat and scarf set, a Gryffindor scarf, golden snitch earrings and multiple handbags. After moving to Aberdeen, I lost touch with the series due to not having a TV in my student accommodation and leaving my books at home. So, why not revisit the first book with me? Or read it for the first time?

Harry Potter is one of the most common book series you can find second-hand due to the sheer amount of copies sold and different editions. There’s even a Scot’s Edition (which I have yet to read). Although my books are not pre-loved, they are “borrowed” from my big brother, who read the series when they were first released. The whole collection is £30 (or £5 each individually) on the Kindle store if you’d prefer to read it digitally. So, with that out of the way, let’s get into the book.

Spoilers ahead

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is a brilliant introduction to the series. We’re thrown into the wizarding world along with Harry. We’re just as clueless and amazed as him, unlike Hermione and Ron- who give us two different perspectives of the world. Ron grew up surrounded by the wizarding world since his family are a “pureblood” family (coming from generations of wizards and witches). He knows most common knowledge in this world like Quidditch and famous wizards like Dumbledore and- of course- Harry. Hermione is the opposite; she has come from a Muggle family and knew nothing about the wizarding world before receiving her Hogwarts letter. She has made it her goal to be the best witch she possibly can be, reading every textbook on their booklist before going to Hogwarts. She knows more obscure things from the Wizarding world that Ron doesn’t know yet- like spells and knowledge she has read in her books. This allows both characters to be used for exposition in different ways without it seeming unnatural.

Harry, Ron and Hemione are brilliant main characters and are all well-rounded. Ron is a loyal friend to Harry but can be mean to Hermione for her bookishness. Hermione is intelligent in theory but can struggle to apply the knowledge from class in real situations. Harry is a flawed main character too, but more so in the later books. He is quite one-dimensional in this book, but this is common with main characters, especially in children’s and YA (young adult) fiction.

The characters work well together and grow to have a believable friendship. During the climax of the book, each member of the trio has a moment to shine. They work together to figure out how to get past the Devil’s Snare (A sort of magical plant that suffocates people). Harry uses a broomstick to catch the correct winged key to unlock the next door. Ron wins the game of giant Wizard chess. And Hermione solves a potions riddle; One potion will allow her to go back and help Ron, another will allow Harry to progress and the others are poison or useless. This allows us to see how the characters have grown and work together.

The plot of this book is one of the weakest in the series in my opinion. This is mainly due to the focus being on introducing us to the world. Despite its fairly weak climax (which ends as quickly as it begins), the story itself is fun and full of mystery- just not the best in the series. I still love this book- the mysteries throughout the novel come together nicely at the end, and most loose ends are tied up neatly- but not all of them. There are a few mysteries left unsolved to encourage you to read the following instalments in the series. The plot twist of Quirrell being behind everything is a shocking twist for first time readers and makes rereading more interesting as you notice all the small details and hints you missed the first time. This book is well-written, and the world within it is rich with interesting ideas and full of potential. The earlier books in the series are children’s books, so it’s unfair to critique them or compare them to other fantasy books.

I did find some of the descriptions rather insensitive towards certain groups. Some of the characters are portrayed badly because of their appearance, the family they come from, the house they are sorted into, or their race. Many people argue that the Goblins in the magical world are anti-Semitic, described as “hook-nosed greedy, money-hungry bankers”. So, although I have always enjoyed the books, they aren’t perfect nor are they the best fantasy books of all time (as some fans claim). They are simply enjoyable.

Overall, this was a short read (223 pages) and only took me a couple of days to read all the way through (and I’m a slow reader). I’d recommend reading this one if you haven’t already, as you can find it in almost every charity shop in the UK or your local library. Although the book series as a whole has problems, I find the first few books especially wholesome. The series does a brilliant job of growing with the reader- getting darker and darker as the books progress. This book is unbelievably easy to immerse yourself in and is full of warmth, feeling like being wrapped in a warm, fluffy blanket.

Have you read the Harry Potter books yet? If so, what did you think of them? Please let me know. I’d love to hear what you thought of this book in the comments or on social media using the hashtag #thriftymangobookclub. What did you think of my first book club blog post?

Look out tomorrow on my social media pages to find out what my next read will be!

Thanks for reading x

Photography: Ryan Duff