Average Rating: 
Rating: - Much better than I expected
Harry Potter thought he had a fairly normal life (aside from living with his aunt and uncle who hated him), but he was very wrong. On his 11th birthday he learned that he was a wizard and had been invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Suddenly, Harry is plunged into an entirely new world of magic. At Hogwarts Harry has friends for the first time in his life. Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are his best friends at the school and they are the ones who help Harry through all of his troubles. From the very beginning though, Harry is slightly aware of something strange going on at Hogwarts. Harry pieces together the mystery slowly throughout the school year in while he isn't busy working on schoolwork or Quidditch (a magical game played on broomsticks).
My favorite part about this book was the world that J.K. Rowling created. While it would have been easy for her to just set the story in a school where the kids learn magic, she didn't. Things like Diagon Alley, which is where all of the students go to get school supplies, allow her to add so much more to the magic world just through descriptions of things Harry sees. Quidditch also makes the world seem much more real.
I originally read this book because I needed a young adult book for class, but I ended up enjoying it far more than I thought I would. I can't remember the last time I actually read much outside of school, but after reading this book I read the other three and am now anxiously awaiting the fifth book. I would recommend this book to pretty much anyone. It's obvious that it was aimed at younger readers, but I found I enjoyed it as much at 17 as my sister did at 11.
Rating: - Pure Genius!
Well, I think it's well past time the world's seen a children's book like this one. Captivating, magical, exciting, suspenseful, amusing and interesting are just a small handful of the astonishingly large number of positive adjectives that can be used to describe Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone.
Unknown before the release of this now universally acknowledged modern-day literary masterpiece, author J.K. Rowling engraved the name of her title character in stone after the book hit stores. After even a few pages it will seem impossible to forget poor Harry Potter, the neglected nephew of tubby Vernon Dursley and his shrill wife Petunia. Rowling wittily plunges readers into a thrilling fantasyland where simple Harry, who is mistreated and made fun of in the "muggle" world, learns he is not only a talented and promising wizard but a celebrity.
But Stardom is not all fun and games. Not only does wizarding work prove hard, but Harry soon learns, like any icon, there are those who adore him and those who don't. Sinister Draco Malfoy, a spoiled boy in Harry's class delights in making Harry feel stupid and tormenting his new found friend, Ron. And suspicious Professor Snape openly hates Harry with apparent passion.
But this turns out to be the least of Harry's problems. It soon becomes shatteringly evident that someone else dislikes Harry. Someone far more powerful and dangerous who has been holding a malicious grudge for ten years, and is finally ready to settle the score.
As humble Harry Potter becomes every reader's vision of a true hero Rowling's audience realizes that the 'Sorcerer's Stone' is not just an interesting children's book, but a stroke of genius. J.K. Rowling is probably the best author in decades and (in my opinion) one of the best children's writer of all time.
Readers will fall in love with this quirky, young wizard and his courageous friends. I have yet to meet anyone who has read this whole book and didn't love it. It's amazing, it's just amazing.
Rating: - where it all began...
even if you haven't read any of j.k.rowling's books, it is impossible not to have noticed the harry potter phenomenon that is sweeping across the globe. children and adults alike are experiencing what has grown to be known as 'potter mania', and few books have ever achieved the legendary status that these books have reached. the question playing on all our minds is this: why are the books so popular? read on to find out! the first book in the series, 'harry potter and the philosopher's stone', introduces ten-year-old harry; an orphan who is forced to live with his aunt and uncle dursley. he is continually mistreated, causing readers to feel immediate sympathy and liking for him. when harry is rescued from his ghastly relatives by a giant man called hagrid, he learns that he is no ordinary boy but a wizard, and that his parents were not killed in a car crash as harry had previously been told, but were murdered by an evil wizard called lord voldemort. harry was just a baby at the time, but when voldemort tried to kill harry, somehow his attack was resisted and voldemort was stripped of all his powers and vanished. because of that, harry is famous in the wizard world, and easily recognisable by the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead. harry is then taken by hagrid to kings cross station, platform nine-and-three-quarters, where he catches the hogwarts express to 'hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry'. upon arrival at the school the 'sorting hat' - a magical wizard's hat that possesses the ability to read into your mind, sorts all the pupils into different houses. harry is sorted into gryffindor - the red house for the brave and daring. along with his two best friends hermione granger and ron weasley, harry begins his adventures. he soon adjusts to the ways of the wizard world, which are so very different to the ways of 'muggles', muggle being the term used to describe non-magical people. Harry is provided with a flying broomstick and a magic wand, which he has to learn to use. He meets strange people and creatures, including ghosts, trolls, dragons, and a terrifying three-headed dog called 'Fluffy'. Although Harry is not a particularly brilliant student, he is talented at Quidditch, a wizard sport. Between classes, games, and quarrels with teachers and classmates, Harry becomes involved in a mystery concerning the magical Philosopher's Stone. And as for Lord Voldemort ... perhaps he hasn't vanished completely after all ... So let's return to wondering why the books are so popular. Although the books are aimed at children, many of the themes and plotlines seem to be intended for adult readers. The books can be read on so many different levels - readers can enjoy the books as a simple story or they can look deeper. The Harry Potter books have attracted a vast audience, and the books appeal to both male and female readers in different age groups, cultures and countries. The ideas behind the books are relatively simple, and they are not entirely original. However, the books are written in such an original and creative way that they are unique. The books are absolutely crammed with detail, and this is what makes the books so believable and complex. Even seemingly insignificant details often prove to be relevant at later stages in the story. Harry himself is an extremely loveable character. People can identify with his initial sense of hopelessness at the start of the first book, and then relief when he is rescued by Hagrid and learns that he is a wizard. Children fall in love with Harry because he reminds them of themselves. Harry is not perfect, has both friends and enemies, and experiences unfair treatment, but he has qualities that readers admire, especially his determination and his bravery. However, not everyone has reacted positively to the Harry Potter books. In several schools, churches and even some American states, the books have been banned. Many claim that the books promote witchcraft and are generally 'evil'. To me this seems ridiculous! The Harry Potter books certainly don't condone evil behaviour; in fact it is quite the opposite, as there is a strong Good versus Evil theme running throughout the books. I would definitely recommend the Potter series to anyone over the age of about eight, as some of the scenes may frighten younger readers. Adults, don't let yourself be put off just because it has been labelled as just a kid's book, because this really isn't the case. I've spoken to several critics of the books, but not one of them had actually read the Potter books. So for you sceptics out there, don't pass judgement on the books unless you've at least given 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' a try. I guarantee that after the first page you'll be as caught up by Potter Mania as the rest of us are!
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