Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

As a 23-year-old, I’m a bit late to the Harry Potter party, having only started reading the series last year, but in thinking of my third favourite book, The Philosopher’s Stone was the one that stood out.

Not only did Rowling’s simple writing style reassure me that my own is just fine, but Harry Potter also ignited a love for children’s and teen books that I never knew I had. Since reading Harry Potter, I turned my sights on Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, and Douglas Adams, revelling in the child-like imagination that these authors, including Rowling, bring.

Everyone relates to… show more.

To experience a time machine effect where one is transported at once to the days of their youth, a reader simply needs to pick up the Harry Potter novel that started the journey of the young boy thrust unwittingly into a world of pure, unblemished magic.

Any time I want to remember what it was like being a kid, I pick up the first in the series from Rowling. Her tale encompasses the joy and terrors of Disney movie classics Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs or Sleeping Beauty, from the earliest animated films but also firmly plants a ghoulish… show more.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is the first book in the Harry Potter series, drawing readers into its magical world filled with fantasy and adventure.

I personally like books where the author has an overactive imagination, and this author truly takes the cake in that regard. J.K. Rowling’s creative storytelling draws readers of all ages into Harry’s enchanting world and journey of self-discovery as he travels to an unknown world. The characters and some of the themes highlighted (such as bullying, trying to fit in, self-doubt, adjusting to change, and not getting drawn in by evil) will resonate with… show more.

All the Harry Potter books are relatively easy to read, but as the first in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone takes the win as the best introductory fantasy book.

In fact, the Harry Potter series has introduced millions of people to the fantasy genre who wouldn’t otherwise read such books. It’s clear why: the Philosopher’s Stone is light-hearted, funny, relatable, and ten times better than the film. 

It is the best middle-grade fantasy series ever written! It is a phenomenon! The writing is so descriptive, and the storyline and premise have so much creative imagination. 

Good versus evil. Good always wins. Magic is real if you believe in its power. Anything is possible if you believe in yourself; the power of the universe is always working out for you in your favor, even when you think it’s not. Even with the bad, it’s still working out.

It’s the bad that makes you see the good, and the darkness that guides you to find the light within yourself.… show more.

Is there a fantasy novel that has been more widely read and loved than Harry Potter?

Ms. Rowling has brought the ‘coming-of-age’ story to fantasy in a way that is somehow familiar and magical, all at once. The only novel on my list without a female protagonist (though arguably Hermione qualifies!), I would be remiss if I didn’t recommend the most influential fantasy novel of our time.

Harry’s ‘Chosen One’ status and yet utter relatability make him one of my favorite characters of all time, and his magical world is one that I would love to find myself living… show more.

How can I not recommend the ‘new’ boy-wizard, who can perhaps challenge Merlin’s claim to be the ‘most famous magician’? 

But more than that, I read each of these novels as they came out, far more gripped than I expected to be. Their portrayal of magic as a skill, with terminology and subject matter going back into the past, helped to make the history of magic something to be taken seriously. 

I’ll always be grateful for that, as well as for the fascinating conversations I’ve had with other avid readers of the books. 

J.K. Rowling also helped inspire the British… show more.

I know, I know. Harry Potter—it’s been done to death.

I’ll respond with two counterpoints. The first is that I couldn’t in good faith leave it off this list, because this book (and the entire series) is a masterclass in worldbuilding (plus, it’s practically the reason I became a writer). The second point is that too many young people are not reading this book. My own kids aren’t even interested! Not okay.

Harry Potter is escapism at its very best. I don’t think I would’ve survived my preteen and teenage years without it. Not only do these books immerse… show more.

I grew up in an extremely poor and abusive household. To escape what was going on around me, I read a lot as a kid. I remember the day that the first Harry Potter book came out. I was the same age as Harry back then and I wanted so desperately to leave my world behind, just like Harry. That series got me through the worst times in my life.

Besides the fact that it is one of the most popular books ever written, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is also, at its heart, a mystery. The main characters of Harry, Ron, and Hermione become sleuths convinced that someone is trying to steal the Sorcerer’s Stone. There is danger, red herrings, and suspects, even revealing that their main suspect of Professor Snape wasn’t the villain they initially thought. In fact, several of the Harry Potter series books are essentially mysteries (e.g. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets).