Some boys find themselves cruelly under the thumb of unsympathetic and unloving foster parents.
Most boys discover some idiosyncrasy in their looks. Harry has a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. Some children learn a surprising thing or two about their heritage, sometimes from a mysterious visitor. Harry receives a visit from Hagrid, a giant, who brings the news that Harry's father and mother were a wizard and a witch. Harry must leave the horrid Dursleys, explains Hagrid, to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.