It was 10 A.M. on the morning of Saturday January 29th, 2022, and James and Lily were in Lily's room preparing to record a video for Lily Luna's World.
"Good morning," Lily greeted their viewers cheerfully, "And welcome back to Lily Luna's World. I am Lily Luna Potter, and I am once again being joined by my favorite brother, James Sirius Potter. Today, we are going to be doing something extremely exciting. "
At this, James held up a paperback copy of a book with a brown cover. The book had the name Harry Potter at the top in gold lettering and the words and the Sorcerer's Stone below the name in brown lettering. The cover art depicted an eleven year old Harry flying on his broom trying to catch the Golden Snitch. Hogwarts castle was depicted behind Harry and an opening in the castle showed Fluffy's three heads. In the distance, the forest's pointed pine trees mirrored the pointed towers of the castle while a unicorn passed by. The very bottom of the cover illustrated soft red and blue tiled floor.
"So," said Lily glowingly, "The book Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone tells the story of our father, Harry James Potter, as he experienced his first year at Hogwarts."
"The publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the fact that it was made available to muggles is significant, " explained James, "Because it was the first-time ever that the muggles were proactively allowed to have a glimpse into the Wizarding World. It was also the first time a Hogwarts student essentially had a year of his life at the school chronicled. "
"So," grinned Lily, "Today James and I are going to be reviewing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as a book. Please note that we are reviewing it as a stand-alone book for the purposes of this video and are not yet considering how it ties in with the rest of the books on the life of our dad."
"That's one of the great things about Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, " praised James, "The book, while an introductory book to a series, can be read and enjoyed in and of itself and you can feel like you get closure when you finish it."
"I totally agree," smiled Lily, "So, James, what's your favorite part of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone?"
"My favorite part of the book by far, " said James radiantly, "Is when dad gets his wand. I just love the feeling of magic and mystery in that scene. The text itself says that the very dust and silence in here seemed to tingle with some secret magic and that's exactly how it felt. I also love how red and gold sparks shoot out of Harry's wand when he finds his match. It feels like foreshadowing of dad going into Gryffindor with those being the colors of the sparks. Plus, the whole scene had a deep rite of passage feel to it."
"I won't argue against any of that, " beamed Lily, "But my favorite scene is the Sorting Hat scene. That was actually the scene that felt most like a rite of passage to me. It was immensely satisfying for me to see that dad could've fit into any of the houses."
"That's totally fair, " acknowledged James, "I suspect many people will say Hagrid telling Harry he is a wizard is the biggest rite of passage."
"More than anything else, " explained Lily, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is s struggle for self-identity story."
James nodded.
"So, James," continued Lily, "What is your favorite character moment in Sorcerer's Stone?"
"Before I answer, " replied James matter of factly, "I think I should inform our viewers that our mom is a sports reporter for the Daily Prophet. Though some of her connections, we have been able to not only attend some professional Quidditch matches, but actually meet some of the players. One of the players we have met is Puddlemore United captain and Keeper Oliver Wood, who was a fifth year Keeper who was Gryffindor Quidditch captain when dad was a first year. The thing that sticks out to me is that Oliver took Harry under his wing, even teaching him the rules of Quidditch. Oliver didn't give a damn that Harry was only eleven and only a first year, nor that first year Quidditch players were rarer that hot snow. Once Oliver knew Harry had the talent, he accepted him straight away."
"Along those lines, " added Lily brightly, "Oliver's player picks, other than himself, consisted of three boys and three girls so he was decisively nonsexist."
"There are no boys or girls, only people." piped up James, "The only difference between a boy and girl is the pronouns used to refer to them "
"Exactly, " agreed Lily, "I really respect Oliver Wood and I'm grateful that we've met him through mom's connections. He always speaks fondly of his relationship with dad during those three years he was dad's captain."
"So, what's your favorite character moment, Lily? " inquired James.
"My favorite character moment actually occurs in the very first chapter, " said Lily more solemnly, "After the events of Halloween night 1981, while most witches and wizards are celebrating the downfall of Lord Voldemort, Minerva McGonagall's reaction to the events of the night is not joy at the downfall of Lord Voldemort, but genuine sadness at the deaths of James and Lily. "
"You're appreciating the depth of just how caring Minerva McGonagall actually is, " recognized James, "There are few people who care more about the people they care about than Minerva McGonagall. When dad was at Hogwarts, Minerva was someone who actually cared about Harry as a person and not just about his fame. "
"Hagrid too, " said Lily slowly, "Was someone who genuinely cared about that tragedy of James and Lily rather than just being caught up in Voldemort's power breaking. You can tell it stung him to the core when dad was left at the Dursleys. But what do you think a really popular character moment might be?"
"I'd say the scene in which Hermione tells dad that he's a great wizard and he replies that he's not as good as her and she's all like, "Me. Books and cleverness. There are more important things. Friendship and bravery, " guessed James.
"Yeah, " said Lily thoughtfully, "Hermione is usually thought of as being all about academics, but that scene really reveals her true value set. "
"On the Hogwarts Express, " remembered James, "Hermione says she hopes she'll be in Gryffindor. Many people think she should have been in Ravenclaw, but her values are more consistent with Gryffindor. So, Lily, what is the happiest part of the book for you?"
"It has to be when Gryffindor wins the House Cup, " said Lily warmly, "Dad himself thinks at the time that it was the best night of his life."
"Of course, he now always says the three best days of his life were the three days his children were born," said James warmly, "But for an eleven year old boy who hadn't had many happy times, this had to have been an awesome night. I have to agree with you on this choice, especially we are told by the text that this is how dad feels. And it's a great character moment for Neville when he is awarded the points that clinch the House Cup for Gryffindor."
"On the opposite end of the spectrum, " the saddest scene has to be the Mirror of Erised, "said Lily quietly.
There was a short pause.
"The line about half joy and half terrible sadness is such perfect writing, " continued Lily thoughtfully, "Dad feels joy at actually seeing his family but the other part of his brain knows it's not real. Alas, it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live."
"There's no worse tragedy than a child losing a parent, " said James heavily, "But I'd say the saddest part is still at the beginning when James and Lily actually die. The Mirror of Erised may feel like the saddest scene because it's written in a way that evokes powerful emotion."
"Yeah," said Lily quietly, "The Mirror of Erised is a brillant piece of beautifully sad writing. But, enough with the sad. Let's go to the funny. For me, the funniest line is when: Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel. Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig."
James and Lily both burst out giggling.
"Can't go against that for funniest, " said James cheerfully, "But for funnest, I've gotta go with the Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. Though flying and Quidditch are right up there with it."
Can't go wrong with candy and flying, " smiled Lily, "Though the dragon hatching is an underrated fun part for me."
"Yeah, not too often you get to read a dragon hatching," grinned James, "I love the boldness of dragons. Though we should remind our viewers that no matter what Hagrid thinks, DRAGONS ARE NOT PETS!"
"Dragons are dangerous, " confirmed Lily, "XXXXX without question."
"My favorite artifact in the book," piped up James, "Has to be the invisibility cloak. Just such a cool concept. As you know, the invisibility cloak is mine now as dad passed it on to me."
Lily had a look in her eyes as though she'd just thought of something, but didn't think this video was the time to reveal it.
"My favorite artifact is the put outter," offered Lily, "That's another cool thing for you. Though I'm sure most parents are glad put outters are rare. "
"Yeah, mischievous children could definitely drive mom and dad nuts with such a thing," said James with a twinkle in his eye.
"What is your opinion of the actual writing of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone?" Lily asked James.
"As for the writing itself, " said James in a businesslike voice, "I think the best part of the book is the narrative misdirection. The writing is setting up Snape to be the bad guy when it was really Quirrell all along. The troll, dad's broom at the first Quidditch match, Snape's meeting with Quirrell in the Forbidden Forest. It's all set up for Snape to be the bad guy, especially given how's he's acted, but alas, it's Quirrell in the end. And Dumbledore's' explanation of why Quirrell couldn't touch dad really makes you think."
"I'd say the best part of the writing itself is that even minor characters have clear cut traits. For example, Dean Thomas being good at drawing and liking soccer," opined Lily.
"Or Mrs. Figg being obsessed with cats," added James, "No question that attention to detail was top notch. "
"So were the imagery and world building," said Lily cheerfully., "You really feel as you're reading the book like you're there in it."
"In some ways, " said James observantly, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is a classic school story. It has all the elements. But the vividness of the characters is what sets it apart."
"So," said Lily seriously., "We're coming to the end of this video. But before we close things out, I think we should acknowledge the enmity between dad and Draco Malfoy. "
"True," agreed James, "It wouldn't feel complete to do a video on Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone without at least mentioning Draco because he is such a major character in that book. The same can be said for Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley. Though they are more appropriately discussed in a later video."
"So, James?" asked Lily, "On a scale of 1-10, how do rate Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone?"
"10 out of 10," answered James instantly, "It's a perfectly crafted story for what it is. And it has the perfect mix of funny and serious. happy and sad, mundane, and magical. Then there's the fact that lots of different people can enjoy the book. It's at its core a struggle for self-identity story but can also be enjoyed for its school, magical, and mystery aspects as well its humor."
"I've got with 10 out of 10 as well. I second everything you just said, but I think its ability to be a great stand-alone book even if the others were never written can't be stressed enough."
"Lily, " grinned James, "I really enjoyed making this video with you. We'll have to do Chamber of Secrets at some point in the future."
"We will, " promised Lily, "For my favorite brother James Sirius Potter, this is Lily Luna Potter speaking for Lily Luna's World. Until next time, Potters out."