I have completed the first book in my quest to read Harry before book 7 comes out. A fast read, but with some questions.

The first book of the Harry Potter series was a fast read but it left some questions, some plot , some phenomenon driven.

I think overall the book is accessible and it is squarely targeted at a young adult audience. The writing style (more on that) and the age of the characters (Harry has just turned 11) allow a relatiblity to the book as a whole.

Some of the things I think work:

• The Characters: It is about them and Harry and Ron are very fleshed out with the supporting cast getting enough of a nod to make them interesting and unique. She does a good job creating characters that each fill a “role”, Ron as the smart-alec side kick, Hagrid as the lovable but not too bright giant, etc.
• The Plot: It is a young adult book, and as thus the plot is very linear. It is very straight ahead, following point to point and each chapter setting up the next. When this happened - I had to remind myself it is a young adult book and not get frustrated (minorly) at the “plot convenience playhouse” going on.
• She has fun with some of the archetypes of “fantasy”, and that is good. She know well enough to leave some alone but has fun with books and potions and the like. Added a nice bit of whimsy to the whole.
• The book does deal with things that are easy to relate to. The world has good and evil and sometimes they are not what you suspect, people die, people can get hurt, etc.
• She does not talk down to her audience. Some YA books like to swing the moral hammer sometimes, she does not

And then of course there are somethings I am not so sure of.

• The opening: Seriously, this book has one of the worst first 100 pages. I mean I get that she is trying to set up a dynamic difference between home and school. OK - point made. But the writing style even changes at about page 100. I agree with my mother, it is like a different person stepped in. I have a feeling the opening was written after the core. She may have had an outline, but then wrote out the opening after the fact. OR the opening was written first and put aside, she took some writing classes, and came back to it.
• The Phenomenon: OK - the book for a YA book is good, better than most, but so good to cause a worldwide insanity? I don’t think so. I think timing is everything.

Overall, I enjoyed it. She sets up “holes” for later on stories but ties enough up to satisfy. It also has the feel of a single book, that could be a series. I am not sure of the deal she signed but typically an unknown author is not handed a 7 book deal so she had to tie up enough depending on what the future held. More on this when I review “Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets”.