The Harry Potter Series
J.K. Rowling
As a regular at the Butterbeer bar (located at the Harry Potter Store here in Chicago), I can assure you that this will be an unbiased review.
Just kidding. I’m a huge fan.
The Harry Potter series is pure magic—yes, literally, but also in that rare, hard-to-describe way certain books just are. I grew up on these stories, and revisiting them as an adult somehow makes the nostalgia hit harder. What once felt like pure adventure now reads like something much more layered. The deeper themes—loss, prejudice, courage in quiet forms, resistance to authoritarianism—become sharper the older you get.
As a kid, Hogwarts felt like escape. As an adult, it feels like a mirror—one that reflects how we change, what we carry, and what we choose to stand for when things fall apart.
Forgive my inner scholar for popping up here, but one of the things that keeps me coming back to these books is how they wrestle—sometimes quietly, sometimes head-on—with big questions about free will and morality. (Some of my recent insomnia questions, if I’m being honest.) Sure, Harry’s “chosen one” status makes it seem like destiny’s calling the shots, but the stories seem to drive the idea that it’s the choices we make that really define who we are.
The characters aren’t just good or evil—they’re complicated, flawed, and often stuck making impossible decisions. Snape’s loyalty, Dumbledore’s secrets, even Voldemort’s followers—everyone involved is navigating a messy moral landscape where right and wrong aren’t always clear. It’s a powerful reminder that morality is rarely black and white—it’s tangled, challenging, and deeply human.
So yeah, while Hogwarts is full of magic, it’s really a story about what it means to choose, to stand firm, and to carry on when the world feels like it’s falling apart.
All that said, as a card-carrying Hufflepuff, I’d be remiss if I didn’t lodge one official critique: we do not get nearly enough credit. (Though I will say—Cedric Diggory, you are the absolute best, and yes, I will keep dressing up as you for Halloween.) We’re loyal, hardworking, and the only House not constantly causing existential crises. Give us more than a handful of friendly background characters, please and thank you.
Would I call these books flawless works of literature? Probably not.
Will I continue to reread and rewatch them? Absolutely.
Just kidding. I’m a huge fan.
The Harry Potter series is pure magic—yes, literally, but also in that rare, hard-to-describe way certain books just are. I grew up on these stories, and revisiting them as an adult somehow makes the nostalgia hit harder. What once felt like pure adventure now reads like something much more layered. The deeper themes—loss, prejudice, courage in quiet forms, resistance to authoritarianism—become sharper the older you get.
As a kid, Hogwarts felt like escape. As an adult, it feels like a mirror—one that reflects how we change, what we carry, and what we choose to stand for when things fall apart.
Forgive my inner scholar for popping up here, but one of the things that keeps me coming back to these books is how they wrestle—sometimes quietly, sometimes head-on—with big questions about free will and morality. (Some of my recent insomnia questions, if I’m being honest.) Sure, Harry’s “chosen one” status makes it seem like destiny’s calling the shots, but the stories seem to drive the idea that it’s the choices we make that really define who we are.
The characters aren’t just good or evil—they’re complicated, flawed, and often stuck making impossible decisions. Snape’s loyalty, Dumbledore’s secrets, even Voldemort’s followers—everyone involved is navigating a messy moral landscape where right and wrong aren’t always clear. It’s a powerful reminder that morality is rarely black and white—it’s tangled, challenging, and deeply human.
So yeah, while Hogwarts is full of magic, it’s really a story about what it means to choose, to stand firm, and to carry on when the world feels like it’s falling apart.
All that said, as a card-carrying Hufflepuff, I’d be remiss if I didn’t lodge one official critique: we do not get nearly enough credit. (Though I will say—Cedric Diggory, you are the absolute best, and yes, I will keep dressing up as you for Halloween.) We’re loyal, hardworking, and the only House not constantly causing existential crises. Give us more than a handful of friendly background characters, please and thank you.
Would I call these books flawless works of literature? Probably not.
Will I continue to reread and rewatch them? Absolutely.
🌙🌙🌙🌙
Engaging enough to keep me turning pages late into the night, but not so intense that it wrecks my sleep entirely.
Engaging enough to keep me turning pages late into the night, but not so intense that it wrecks my sleep entirely.
☕
This is my go-to read when life gets busy or tough—a comforting, familiar series that’s easy to pick up and hard to put down, no extra caffeine needed.
This is my go-to read when life gets busy or tough—a comforting, familiar series that’s easy to pick up and hard to put down, no extra caffeine needed.