It is now 10 years since J.K.Rowling first told her story of Harry Potter and his time at Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry. But since then the first six books in the series have sold in excess of 325 millions copies worldwide and the seventh and final book in the series Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows was the first book to ever sell over 12 millions in the U.S alone!

I will admit to having read the series three times at least. But I am now reading them again and thought it was about time I wrote my own Harry Potter review..

Harry Potter and The Philosophers Stone is the first in the series of Seven Books written by J.K.Rowling about a young wizard called Harry Potter.

The Story - - - -

Harry is orphaned as a baby when his parents Lily and James are killed by dark wizard Lord Voldemort, unfortunately for Harry he is sent to live with his only remaining family The Durselys, who consist of Fat Mean Uncle Vernon who believes that Harry should live his life as quietly and out of everyone's way as possible, Aunt Petunia who's belief that Harry's family were freaks and that the truth of Harry's real identity as a famous wizard should be kept from him at all costs, and last but definitely not least is the awful cousin Dudley, fat and a vile bully Dudley makes it his life's work to bully Harry and make him realize that he is only in the house because he has nowhere else to go and not because they actually want him there.
Harry's life is a nightmare until the arrival of half Giant Hagrid who brings with him a birthday surprise that even Harry couldn't have imagined. A letter telling Harry that he has been accepted into Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.
The story then continues on to tell you of Harry's first year at Hogwarts, how he makes best friends in the form of Ron Weasley, a redheaded boy from a wizarding family, and Hermione Granger a very gifted young girl from a muggle family, and their adventures around the grounds of their new school. From Harry's first game of Quidditch, to sneaking a dragon out of the school, to the excitement of coming face to face with the evil wizard who killed Harry's parents.

Opinion - - - -

I am a huge fan of the Harry Potter Series as a whole although I don't think this book isn't the best one in the series, J.K.Rowling really does show off her writing talent.
You can really imagine just what the characters would look like even the magical beings such as the centaurs, and Norbert the dragon, as they are so well described. You can really see the love that J.K. Rowling put into this book as all the people and places really come to life. You can really get into this book, almost feeling as if you know the characters, you feel sorry for Neville Longbottom who gets picked on by Malfoy because he's not the brightest tool in the box but who has a complete heart of gold and tries to stop his friends getting into trouble, even if it means getting into trouble himself. And the bright young witch Hermione Granger, one of Harry's best friends who is fiercely loyal to Harry and who at the start of the book was described by Ron as so annoying and it's no wonder she doesn't have any friends! Soon becomes as into breaking the rules and enjoying the adventures as Harry and Ron, and I think she becomes a better character for it.

All in all, brilliant characters, a great storyline with plenty of fun and adventure.A fantastic book for children and adults alike. You can definitely see why this book and it's follow ups have done so well around the world. I only wish I had half the imagination of the wonderful J.K.Rowling.

Book Price - 5.99
Publisher - Bloomsbury
Online prices - 4.49 is amazon's current price and from their sellers you can pick it up for as little as 0.01p obviously plus the postage :)

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