But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folks use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
This is a story about Harry and his two new friends settling down for their first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry only to discover that they have a part to play in the downfall of the evil Sssh! You-Know-Who. You will like Harry Potter. He's shy and self-doubting and puts up with a lot from his awful aunt Petunia and uncle Vernon and fat cousin Dudley. Poor Harry lost his parents, supposedly in a car crash, when he was a baby and that was when he received the strange lightning-shaped scar across his forehead. Ever since then he has slept in the cupboard under the stairs at the Dursleys' perfectly normal house in Privet Drive and the best thing he has to look forward to is starting at the local secondary school next term - well away from Dudley who will be going to his father's old, expensive school, Smeltings.
But, other people know a lot more about Harry than Harry does himself. That lightning-shaped scar is a matter of enormous interest and Harry is about to discover that he has a lot of friends, and enemies, in a rather different kind of world from the one he was brought up in.
This is a book about magic, but there's plenty of reality. Settling into a new school, making friends, learning who to trust and who not to trust and when to obey school rules and when to overlook them. There's a great deal of humour in the book. You might find the magic funny - visit Diagon Alley to purchase all your Hogwart's kit - but there is strong evil magic too and you won't doubt the courage that Harry has to show in the final chapter.
I really enjoyed the action in this book as well as the humour! My favourite part is when Harry is talking to Lord Voldemort because J.K.Rowling describes the tension and fear Harry feels. Also, when Harry plays his first Quiddich match, you feel like you're actually there! I would defiantly give this book 5/5!
