Week 2 – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling

Welcome to 2024!  Last year on Mondays we had fun with books. This year, we'll look at most of the same books but also some new ones, and see if the first line [or first paragraph] met the goal of a first line which is ==> to hook the reader's attention.

Here are some tips on writing a first line

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/tips-for-writing-the-opening-line-of-your-novel

Week 2 – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling

https://www.jkrowling.com/book/harry-potter-philosophers-stone/

First published: June 26, 1997

Here's what the story is about: Harry Potter is an orphan who lives with his emotionally abusive aunt and uncle. On his eleventh birthday, he receives a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and learns he’s actually a wizard.  During the school year while studying magic, he learns he has an archenemy whose goal is to destroy him.

First line/paragraph: “Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.”

This book starts by introducing the reader to characters. We know they are a husband and wife, we know their last name, we know a little about where they live, and we know how they see themselves. We also know that something “strange or mysterious” will happen in the story, which will be a surprise to them. We also have an idea of the POV [third person or omniscient], and a bit of the narrative voice and flavor of the story.

Compared with the first line of the Agatha Christie book from last week, this first line is [in my opinion] much more intriguing and a better hook.

Does this first line/paragraph hook your attention? If you had never heard of this story, would you buy this book in 2024? Knowing the story, would you change the first line? Tell us in the comments!