While many elements from the fantasy genre can be seen through the books, mystery and the idea of a “coming of age” story have always stuck out to me the most. 

Mystery plays an important role in the first books, especially since almost everything is a mystery to Harry. Rowling has a way of leaving little pieces and hints like the Mirror of Erised and Harry’s suspicion of Snape in book one  to keep the reader guessing until the end. Everything might not seem connected at first, but all is usually revealed at the end while some mysteries might still remain unsolved.

Harry’s journey in the first two books, and the series as a whole, is an experience that changes him and allows him to learn so much about himself. In Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry quickly realizes that he’s famous in the wizarding world, yet he still has much to learn about himself and this new world. He’s never thought of himself as a famous wizard and never really fit with the Dursley’s because of his lack of freedom. “Harry, instead of feeling pleasant and proud, felt quite sure that there had been a horrible mistake. A wizard? Him?” (Sorcerer’s Stone, pg. 57) He doesn’t have much of an identity since he’s always felt so different from everyone else. Through his experiences in the first and second books, Harry’s finally able to figure out who he is and what kind of person he wants to be and also learns the importance of bravery, love, and friendship.

Going along with the idea of coming of age, it’s been very fun and nostalgic to reread these books again, since I read them for the first time when I was much younger and was fortunate to grow up alongside Harry. I remember having a close relationship with my grade school friends and it’s been a friendship that’s spanned more than nine years. Early on in my childhood, I remember trying to follow the example that Harry sets with Ron, Hermoine, and his other Hogwarts friends and it’s been neat to look back and see the parallels between my own life and Harry’s.