It's hard to believe that it's been 16 years since this book exploded into bookstores and flew off the shelf faster than you can say "Accio Harry Potter!" During that 16 years, the series saw seven books, eight movies, two college-musicals and countless fanfics.
Almost everyone knows the story of Harry Potter : On his 11th birthday, a young English boy living with his stodgy aunt and uncle discovers that he's a wizard. This revelation opens a whole new world for young Harry, complete with flying broomsticks, magical creatures and an evil wizard intent on trying to finish what he started 11 years ago.
This is my third or fourth time to read Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone. My first was when I was 24. It's interesting to note that 12 years later, I'm still just as intrigued and captivated by the story as I was as a senior in college.
Although Rowling wrote this a children's book, there's nothing childish about the relationships Harry forges with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. They ring true and their evolution is natural and, more importantly, believable. Even as an adult in my mid-30s, I'm still being taught the principles of honesty and loyalty by these three.
The book is certainly magical, but perhaps the greatest magic is that a young wizard with a lightning scar was responsible for the literacy of a whole new generation. I don't think it's a stretch to say that will continue for the next several generations to come.
Books completed: 11/50