ARIANA SOTELO

The Mirror

There is a long list of classic books from The Great Gatsby to The Grapes of Wrath but the number of books doesn’t stop there due to the growing popularity of the Harry Potter series by author J.K. Rowling. According to Pottermore the series has sold over 500 million books worldwide and has been written in over 80 different languages. These books will inevitably be part of the classics we show to future generations.

The Harry Potter books may seem like children’s stories but that is far from the truth. The series includes seven books that follow the life of Harry Potter, a young boy whose parents were killed by Lord Voldemort, a powerful dark wizard. Potter then goes to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where he faces numerous challenges and eventually his destiny catches up with him.

The books include strange creatures, fierce battles, and magic beyond your imagination. To add to the excitement, the series makes the reader connect with the characters and grow emotionally attached to the story.

The characters in the books are described to an extent where you can see them clear as day. You can end up hating one character today but loving them tomorrow which is one of the aspects that makes this series so great. Potter has numerous friends including Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley. These characters provide substantial support to the main character and each has special traits that contribute greatly to the story.

The theme of the story is also remarkable. It revolves around the different characteristics that each person has whether they have magical abilities or not. The series shows how the magic that these characters have isn’t what makes them special, but their strengths and personality traits. The theme is presented throughout the series by creating four different houses or groups which include Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each of these houses represents different personality traits and are used to put students into groups with others similar to them.

The series, although great,  also has some weak points that could potentially push people away from reading or watching it. One of these points is that the series is quite long and can reach up to 766 pages. Many people don’t want to read long books or series because it can take up a lot of their time.

Another fault in the Harry Potter series is that, for some families, it is inappropriate or gives off a negative message. For example, some believe stories involving magic or strong villainous characters can be related to satanic actions or can be very violent. These stories can impact the youth and can cause them to be led astray which is why parents tend to wait until their child is older so they know right from wrong. Other movies that can be possibly affiliated with satanic messages include Lord of the Rings or Ghost Rider.

The story of Harry Potter was originally a set of books but later the story was made into a number of movies. The books contain more information than the movies but the movies still do a good job of getting the overall point and storyline across. I recommend reading the books first and then watching the movies so you can truly appreciate the work that went into making the film series.

The story of Harry Potter has come to an end with the last book being Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, but there is another set of films that was recently created called Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. This story takes place long before Harry Potter but includes some familiar characters from the Harry Potter books.

Overall, after weighing the good with the bad, I believe that Harry Potter is undoubtedly an amazing series. Even with some struggles, the story is definitely worth exploring and I would rate it five magical wands out of five. I recommend this series if you enjoy adventure, magic, action, and friendship.

This series has left a mark on past and present generations and it is almost certain that the story of Harry Potter will be a classic many of us remember for a long time.