Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1) - by J.K. Rowling - Characters

For those of you just getting into the Harry Potter series of books like I am, you'll notice that the first book has a LOT of characters. I, at times, found it hard to remember who was who in the first few chapters. To help, I've made a list of the characters that present themselves in the first book.

Harry Potter - he is of course the namesake for the series of books and very quickly begins to play the role of a hero. To me he seemed a bit uncomfortable in his own skin which is no surprise since he was not only orphaned as a baby, but also taken in by his aunt and uncle who locked him in a cupboard underneath the stairs of their home. Harry does not find out about his "magic" past (and future) until he is approached by Hogwarts, his new school.

Petunia Dursley - Petunia is Harry's aunt and sister to Harry's late mother. Although her sister was able to perform magic, Petunia has no abilities of her own (a non-magical person is called a Muggle). She is against magic and makes every effort to keep Harry in the dark about it. She caters to her son, Dudley, but treats Harry as a burden to her.

Vernon Dursley - Petunia's husband and Harry's uncle. He is very much the head of the household and also does not believe in magic. He is rather mean to Harry, and also keeps Harry from finding out the truth about his parents and his past.

Dudley Dursley - Harry's cousin and son of Petunia and Vernon. Dudley is a spoiled bully and knows how to get his way with his parents. He is privileged, and likes to rub this in Harry's face.

Fred and George Weasley - a set of trouble-making twins that attend school with Harry. Their younger brother, Ron, is in Harry's class

Ron Weasley - Ron is Harry's best friend at Hogwarts. He comes from a poor family and has several siblings. Everyone in his family is magic, so he often lives in the shadows of his other family members.

Hermione Granger - When she is first introduced in the book, Harry and Ron both find her bossy and annoying. She is a know-it-all, but has a lot of skill as far as magic is concerned. She excels at school, and tries her best to fit in even though she has a fear of failure. By about mid-novel she has become a friend to Harry and Ron.

Draco Malfoy - An arrogant bully who is in the same year as Harry at Hogwarts. He makes it clear that he does not like Harry, and does not respect anyone who does not have the same financial or magical background as he does.

Neville Longbottom - a nerdy child in the same year as Harry at Hogwarts. He is always forgetting things, and is not as skilled as the rest of his class. He is somewhat of a friend to Harry, although it is not clear if Harry and his friends really consider Neville their friend, or only feel sorry for him.

Professor Dumbledore - Headmaster of Hogwarts. He is a great wizard with a bit of a sense of humour. He seems to be taking Harry under his wing and guiding him to becoming a great wizard as well. He is a bit of a mystery, but I am sure we will learn more about him as the stories progress.

Professor McGonagall - She is Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts, which makes sense since she often disguises herself as a cat. She is also head of Gryffindor House (Harry's dormitory at Hogwarts).

Professor Quirrell - He is the "Defence Against the Dark Arts" teacher at Hogwarts. He wears a turban that conceals a surprise towards the end of the first novel. He seems very nervous and jumpy, and has a bit of a stutter.

Professor Snape - Is teacher of Potions at Hogwarts and also head of Slytherin House (Malfoy's dormitory). He is quite mean to people he does not like, and makes a point of being especially humiliating towards Harry. Harry considers Snape an enemy early in the novel.

Hagrid - Hagrid is the gamekeeper at Hogwarts. He is a giant and hairy man, and was first introduced to us when he went to retrieve Harry (in order to take him to Hogwarts). He once attended Hogwarts, but was expelled, and that is why he is now only the gamekeeper. Dumbledore seems to really trust Hagrid, and Harry immediately considers Hagrid one of his closest friends. Best description of Hagrid so far in my mind would be that he is a "gentle giant" who does not mean anyone any harm.

Filtch - He is the school's caretaker, and loves to catch students where they are not supposed to be. He tours the halls at night, and seems to get a thrill from the hunt. Harry and his friends have a couple of close calls with Filtch.

Mrs. Norris - Filtch's pet cat who helps him find students who are sneaking around the school.

Professor Sprout - Herbology teacher

Professor Flitwick - Charms teacher

Professor Binns - History of Magic teacher. He also does not realize he has died and has become a ghost.

Madam Hooch - Quidditch coach (a sport Harry and Malfoy participate in - on broomsticks).

Peeves - a poltergeist who appears out of nowhere and causes trouble for anyone who encounters him.

Characters in Youth In Revolt by C.D. Payne

I've just finished the book Youth In Revolt by C.D. Payne (review coming soon). If you decide to read the book, one thing you'll notice is that there are a lot of characters in this book. So, to make it easier for you, I've decided to create a post listing some of the characters in the book, and a brief one to two line description of each character. I haven't included all of the characters, since there are so many of them, and haven't put them in any particular order. I hope you find this helpful! 

Nick Twisp - 14 year old, sex-crazed teenaged boy. He is very smart, but gets into all kinds of trouble. The book is written in his words, based on his diary.

François - A rebellious and outspoken alter-ego created by Nick. François is constantly talking Nick into doing things he shouldn't.

Carlotta - When Nick gets into trouble with the FBI he creates this female alter-ego to help him still live a normal life, even though he is in hiding. Carlotta is sweet, innocent, and dresses like a grandmother. She is sometimes called Carly.

Sheeni Saunders - The object of Nick's affection. A popular girl with strict parents. She uses Nick's admiration for her to her own advantage.

Vijay Joshi - One of the first friends Nick make in Ukiah, a recently immigrated Indian boy who goes to highschool with Nick. He later becomes one of Nick's enemies.

Lefty - Nick's best friend from Oakland. He was at the centre of one of Nick's bigger schemes at the beginning of the novel.

Fuzzy - Nick's best friend in Ukiah. His nick name is Fuzzy because he is very hairy.

Albert - Sheeni is given a very ugly dog (from hell according to Nick). She falls in love with the dog but her parents won't let her keep it. In order to please Sheeni, Nick keeps the dog for her. Sheeni refers to Albert as Nick and her "love child".

Dwayne - Dumb neighbour of Nick Twisp. He later becomes Nick's roommate when Dwayne's mother becomes Nick's father's housekeeper. Nick quite often uses Dwayne's lack of brains to help scam money out of him.

Bruno Modjaleski - The school's star athlete. He, also, is unintelligent and develops a crush on Carlotta (Nick's female alter-ego).

Lacey - Lacey is Nick's father's 19-year-old girlfriend who later dumps Nick's father and becomes Sheeni's brother, Paul's girlfriend.

Mr. Furguson - Nick's mother's extreme communist neighbour. He later moves in with Nick's dad in Ukiah and marries Dwayne's mother.

Jerry - Nick's mother's love interest at the beginning of the book. He is an overweight, unintelligent, horny, truck driver. He later dies of a heart attack, but before he does, he manages to get Nick's mother pregnant.

Wally - Nick's mother's highly intelligent boyfriend after Jerry. He is described in the book as a giant. He gets along with Nick, but is later pushed out of Nick's life by Nick's mother's new love interest.

Paul Saunders - Sheeni's hippy brother. He speaks in riddles, and always seems to know what's coming next for Nick. He later begins to date Nick's father's ex-girlfriend, Lacey.

Lance Wecott - A police officer with the Oakland police. He comes to Nick's house to investigate a break-in, and later ends up dating Nick's mother. He later becomes Nick's step-father.

Heather - Heather lived in the dorms at the French school Sheeni attended, and later became Fuzzy's girlfriend.

Joanie Twisp - Nick's flight attendant sister. She does not get along with her parents, so she does not see them often. She helps Nick out when she can.

Bernice - Nick's assistant in one of his ploys to get Sheeni to move back to Ukiah. Nick met her at Sheeni's dorms, and she helped him by becoming a spy for him, and also carrying through some of Nick's plots.

Taggarty - Sheeni's sexually experienced roommate at the French school she attended. She is a know-it-all and tends to get on Nick's nerves.

Apurva Joshi - Vijay's younger sister. She is beautiful, but must stay true to her indian customs to avoid angering her parents. She helps Nick to make Sheeni jealous. Apurva is in love with Sheeni's ex-boyfriend, Trent.

Sonya - An overweight and unpopular classmate at Nick's highschool in Ukiah. She later becomes obsessed with Trent Preston.

Mrs. Crampton - Dwayne's, slow, mother. Nick's father's housekeeper, and later Mr. Furguson's wife.

Trent Preston - Sheeni's ex boyfriend, and Apurva's current love interest. Nick thinks of Trent as a rival for most of the book. Trent is a poet, good looking and one of the most popular boys at school.

Mrs. Saunders - Sheeni's strict, church-going mother. She is described as "500-years-old".

Mr. Joshi - Apurva and Vijay's strict Indian father. He likes to maintain control of his children's lives, and often threatens to send Apurva to India if she does not behave.

Mario - Joanie's roommate, Kimberly's, boyfriend. He later makes a business deal including Nick.

George Twisp - Nick's negligent father. He is a bit on the alcoholic side, and has very little appreciation for Nick.

Kimberly - Nick's sister, Joanie's roommate. She is studying business, and uses any opportunity to make money. Even going so far as to rent out her couch to Nick for $3.00 a night.

Mrs. De Falco - Fuzzy's mother. She later has an affair with Nick's father which does not end well.

Estelle Twisp - Nick's mother. She worries about Nick, but when Nick is around she is constantly getting her patience tested.

Please feel free to add to the character list if you've read the book! Place the character name and description in a comment.

Meet Nick Twisp...

I've been reading the book Youth In Revolt by C.D. Payne for a few days now, and I figured it's time to introduce you to the main character in the book, named Nick Twisp.

Nick is a 14 year old boy who lives in Oakland California, just across the Bay from San Francisco. The book is written in diary format, and right from the first entry you can see that Nick is hormone crazed, sarcastic and highly intelligent.

Nick's parents are divorced, and he does not have a strong relationship with either one of them. At the beginning of Youth in Revolt, Nick lives with his mom, and her sometimes present, trucker boyfriend, Jerry. He spends some weekends with his dad and his "bimbette", 19-year old girlfriend, Lacey.

Not unlike most 14 year old boys, Nick is curious about sex, and makes every attempt to satisfy his curiosity. His interests peak as he meets Sheeni whose character seems to toy with Nick's known desire for her.

Nick also has an alter-ego named François. He was created to fulfill Sheeni's desire to marry a French man. François is a rebel, and talks Nick into doing things that he normally wouldn't do.

To sum Nick up, he is a highly intelligent, resourceful, trouble-making, sex-crazed, nerdy, teenaged boy who will stop at nothing to win the heart of the girl of his dreams.