When J. K. Rowling wrote “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” in 1997, it sparked a fantasy revolution. In years following the first book, the franchise would be expanded into six more books, eight movies, two spinoffs and a play. Over the years, fans have become totally obsessed with Harry Potter. They will go to extremes, making costumes and visiting the Harry Potter World at Universal Studios, Florida.

 Pottermore is a website that helps fans of the series become more involved in the Wizarding World. Pottermore has sorting hat quizzes, exams to test knowledge of the characters and articles. 

Senior English teacher Melanie Stephens remembers when the books first came out.

“I started reading them in middle school,” Stephens said. “My best friend Molly let me borrow her books and I just became hooked on the world.”

Many times when books are made into movies, there are differences that are hard to ignore. Freshman Adele Drummond thinks that the movies have evolved over time. 

“I think they are really good, they became better as the years have gone and as they have progressed,” Drummond said. “The newest ones have the best special effects.”

Both the Harry Potter movies and novels have changed people’s attitudes toward fantasy. Junior Allie Schein thinks that books have helped to promote reading.

“It has helped a lot of kids become really into reading, especially when it first came out,” Schein said. “I think it began making kids excited about reading again and making fantasy a really popular genre with books.”

When the plot of a book is well done, it is more enjoyable to read. It also helps when the characters are well written. Stephens likes how well Rowling developed the characters. 

“It just does a good job working with characters particularly in the books,” Stephens said. “The morals of the story are just so good about friendship, perseverance and good defeating evil.”

It has been 13 years since “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” first came out. Since then, Rowling has expressed her different ideas about what she wishes she put in the books. Schein thinks that Rowling should just keep them as they are. 

“Recently, Rowling has been adding in a lot of weird details,” Schein said. “She’s been going back and adding in details to the books ten years after they were written; It hasn’t ruined it for me, but she needs to stop.”

Regardless of the new ideas she has had, Rowling made a world that will be remembered for years to come. 

Contact Adeline Gruen at [email protected]