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Carla (Carla's Book Bits)

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Carla (Carla's Book Bits) is currently reading

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter, #1)

by J.K. Rowling

bookshelves: all-time-faves, currently-reading

Reading for the 7th time

read in December 2012

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Carla (Carla's Book Bits) said: " Re-read from June 2024:

I re-read this series every 1-3 years. I see it as a form of self-care, returning to a familiar and comfortable world whenever I feel like I'm in a particularly tough time in life.

Everyone has already read Harry Potter, so I wo Re-read from June 2024:

I re-read this series every 1-3 years. I see it as a form of self-care, returning to a familiar and comfortable world whenever I feel like I'm in a particularly tough time in life.

Everyone has already read Harry Potter, so I won't waste time and I'll only talk about my feelings. Few books capture my heart and imagination the way Harry Potter does. Could I say it's because I grew up with the books? That I am of the Harry Potter generation, growing up alongside the characters at the very age they were in when the books came out? Of course, that can't be discounted. But I've read and loved many books as a kid too, and not many of them have stayed with me and comforted me the way Harry Potter does.

Why is that? It's a series written with lots of care. There are clues planted in the text books before an actual event happens. There are callbacks and inside jokes for days. There's so much mythology and symbolism, making it rewarding to glean meaning in the scenes. But truly, I think this story has lasted so long in my heart because the themes just personally resonate with me. The whole thesis of the Harry Potter series is that love is the greatest magic that exists. You see it in the way Harry's motivations have always been about being loved within a family. You see it and believe in it when you see all the characters displaying unconditional loyalty to one another. It always makes my heart happy.

This year, I decided I'll be annotating my copies, and my experience doing this has been amazing. During my time annotating this book, I highlighted so many passages that my highlighter ran out of ink partway through. I made lists, marked up details I noticed that came up in later books, made comments about clues, writing, and character insights... Many times I simply poured my feelings out. It was so good. I really felt like my feelings are there on the page with the words, and nothing has ever brought me so close to the story.

Harry Potter is my favorite book series of all time, without a doubt. It resonates in my soul no matter how old I get. I had a great time this year reading and annotating this copy, and I can't wait to continue on!

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Re-read this book and the following six tooo many times.

I remember the first time I ever read this book. I was Harry's age. I was shaking in fear at some scenes, (view spoiler) which is hilarious, considering how NOT scary I find this to be now.

This series is without a doubt the most precious and important to me, and there will never be too many re-reads. :) ...more "

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"Lmfaoooo hi here we are reading Harry Potter again for the 50th time. I'm not ashamed" — Oct 16, 2025 06:20AM

Oct 16, 2025 06:19AM · see review

Carla’s Quotes

“All of man’s other religions place him at the center of creation. But man is nothing—a fraction of the life that will walk the Earth. Earth is nothing—a tiny world that will die with its sun. The sun is one of trillions where life flowers, and wants to live, and dies. And between the suns is an endless vast darkness that dwarfs them, through which life can travel only by giving up that wanting, by losing itself. Even that darkness will eventually die. In such a universe, knowledge is the stub of a candle at dusk.”
― Ruthanna Emrys, The Litany of Earth

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“failure is a feeling long before it’s an actual result.”
― Michelle Obama, Becoming

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“Everyone on Earth, they'd tell us, was carrying around an unseen history, and that alone deserved some tolerance.”
― Michelle Obama, Becoming

tags: kindness, tolerance

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“We believe the one who has power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must ask yourself, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth? Once you have figured that out, you must find that story too. From there you get a clearer, yet still imperfect, picture.”
― Yaa Gyasi, Homegoing

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“Do we settle for the world as it is, or do we work for the world as it should be?”
― Michelle Obama, Becoming

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