Rating: 
Summary: The Extreme
Review: I'm not really into Harry Potter even though it was an extreme story. It was really interesting if you are into wizards and stuff like that. I enjoyed reading it but I'm not into wizards and flying brooms. But it kept leading on to read more.
Rating: 
Summary: not the greatest book ever
Review: I'm not so offended that someone gave this book five stars. I'm offened that everyone (almost) gave this book five stars. This is a great book for kids. It's an okay book for adults too, which is saying something. But it's not saying it's five stars. A thorougly enjoyable story does not equal five stars. There needs to be something more. Or am I just pretentious?
Rating:
Summary: I wish I went to Hogwarts!!!!
Review: I'm not supposed to be in the age range that this book appeals to but you shouldn't pay attention to that. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is smart, imaginative and keeps you guessing right to the end. A great adventure to take your children on.
Rating: 
Summary: How can a 10 year old even consider this WAR & PEACE novel?
Review: I'm one generation removed from the target audience (9-12 year old children). When I was a child, I wouldn't have read something this "meaty" (some 500 pages!!!) even at gun-point. To see millions of kids sit their bottoms sore at libraries to get through this "epic" is beyond me.As a school teacher with very high standards (I frequently introduce Junior High School literature to 4th graders), I simply cannot see my students "sit through" a reading of this caliber. The "point" (if you ever get to it) may be well worth it, but to me the investment of time (and considerable chance of NOT finishing this saga) appears excessive. If a book is meant to appeal to kids, it should be written with their limited abilities and eagerness in mind. I'm almost 40, and thanks, but no thanks, I wouldn't want to spend the countless hours of reading to get to that famous pair of three letter words. My sugegestion: Don't start!
Rating: 
Summary: Ask a 22 year old.
Review: I'm one of those few individuals that enjoy reading children's books. I'm old enough to worry about my own and yet I'm young enough to remember what it was like being a child. I learned about the Harry Potter books on the news when hundreds of the local kids stayed up past midnight to wait in the bookstore for the latest Harry Potter book. "OK," I thought, "I'm going to have to see what the big deal is." So I got off of my couch and headed down to the bookstore to check it out. (Actually I waited until all the kids left.) and picked up a couple of copies. Needless to say I was mildly surprised. From a technical standpoint the book is very "time neutral". The reader is never going to find any references to any specific object. Instead of Chevy, the author simply writes "car". Instead of Mickey D's (McDonalds to those out of the loop.) it's simply "hamburger restaurant". Instead of Pentium III, it's simply a computer. This guarantees that children twenty, forty, or ... while we still have books, will continue to enjoy this book since children can relate to the characters and surroundings in the book. Add in that many words are carefully chosen to try and teach the children new things. Somehow the author manages to chose words that don't hinder the actual reading of the book. (Look up Prefect to see what I mean.) And relating to the book is the most important aspect. Some of the things that happen to Harry Potter certainly happened to me in my youth. Who hasn't been packed into a closet (actually a locker). Who hasn't been punched, chased, and kicked at some point? But the most appealing aspect of Harry Potter are his adventures. To be taken away to a school of magic to learn how to become a wizard. What child doesn't want to learn how to turn sniff boxes into mice? (This was one of the very few outdated references I was able to find.) To interact with ghosts, to fly through the air on a broom, and to dungeon crawl are a few of the adventures that Harry Potter goes through. This is a rare book that can let a child's imagination fly free (pun intended) from the confines of this world and to enter the world of magic. The Harry Potter books is platform nine and three-quarters to this world of imagination.
Rating:
Summary: Sure to become a classic, wonderful book for any age!
Review: I'm over 30 and I LOVE Harry Potter! These books are just wonderful, every one of them kept me engrossed and surprised right up to the end. Just when I thought I had it figured out, the story would take a turn and I'd be wondering what would happen next again. Beautifully written, and great, complex characters! As for some of the criticisms, well, makes you wonder if the same people would give 1 star to the Hobbit, Narnia, and the Wizard of Oz books, classics that include quite a bit of magic and wizardry. All of these books have death in them as well, sometimes featured quite prominently, but I would certainly consider them great children's books regardless. Harry Potter is certainly in the same vein as these. As for saying it's unrealistic, HELLO! It's fantasy! It's not *supposed* to be completely realistic. Again, I would consider the Lord of the Rings one of the great books of our time, but you could say it was unrealistic too, with all the elves and dwarves and wizards. But that doesn't mean it doesn't draw you into that other world and make you imagine what it would be like. The characters become real people to you and that's what makes it great.
Rating:
Summary: Come on! It's not that good.
Review: I'm so weary of "Rowling Can Do No Wrong" reviews. Whether you liked it or not, you must admit that the names Muggles and Harry Potter were found originally in the works of "The Legend Of RAH And The Muggles" and other works by Nancy K Stouffer. I haven't read her book yet, but feel it necessary to share this because of the censorship of truth by those in power. I have no axe to grind, just a desire for truth.
I've read this book and seen the movie. If you like violence perpetrated to and by children, you'll especially love the film version. When Harry kills his teacher, (or was that the love of Harry's mum that killed him?) the death is reminiscent of the Mummy flick with Brandon Frazier. Also look for the Star Wars Chess set adapted for this story.
The story isn't half bad. It's about a kid named Harry (not Larry) Potter who leaves his.. um.. muggle (tm) family (who are very evil and mean and don't practice or believe in witchcraft) and goes to school to study witchcraft and the occult to develop his skills. This school of witchcraft becomes his new nice family though many would like to see him dead there too. Nearly everyone in the story has some kind of magical powers, at least once you leave the train station. After that it becomes kind of a quest story.
It's also another story about faithful friendship which is a good message. It also has one good profound moment involving the Mirror of Erised. If you view either the film or the book, I recommend the book because the violence wasn't nearly as graphic in my mind, and the book doesn't seem as long. They don't leave out much detail that I could think of. They even included the part where wots-his-name takes the blood of the unicorn to sustain his life.
If you like fantasy, you might choose to read "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," by C.S. Lewis, or any of the Chronicles of Narnia. This hasn't been promoted by the public schools or by big companies. At least not in my lifetime. But every page is full of beauty and truth and it's a real work of art. Forgive my descenting view, but I've never been one for following the masses. CC
Rating:
Summary: Harry Skywalker
Review: I'm twenty-seven and I've loved reading great stories for as along as I can remember. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is something that I would have loved to have read as a kid, and something that I love reading now. I just finished this first book and look forward to reading the later books in the series. The story and characters are quirky and interesting. I found the plot of this first book very reminiscent of one of my favorite movies, Star Wars. Think of Harry Potter as Luke Skywalker, raised by his aunt and uncle, unaware of his true potential until the right circumstances invite him to take a step into a larger world. This desire to make more of ourselves and to come in full contact with the magic that we intuitively sense around us is universal to all human beings. It's no wonder that this book and these characters have become so immensely popular. This is a book that can be enjoyed by readers of all ages.
Rating:
Summary: Piffle, Piffle and Fluff
Review: I'm very much a fantasy reader. I love magic tales, fairies and through the looking glass types of stories. This story hinges on how many children feel like misfits in their homes and schools. The escapism of a totally magic world where none of our physics applies and amazing things are ordinary is just so nice and for a scientist it is relaxing, because the pressure to be always right/ correct isn't there. Spells and curses, mythical creatures and the blackest of evil make this just so much of a fun read!
Rating:
Summary: After much debate...
Review: I'm was only going to give this four, because of lack of character development. At first I thought that Rowling didn't portray Harry as a human being. I read this book to the end and thought "Hey...it seems that Harry is perfect. The kid has no flaws. He's got the whole "Lion/Gryffindor/courageous" thing going." Don't argue with me by saying that his flaw is that he's an average student, unlike Hermione. That is NOT a huge flaw. He's GOT to have a weak spot or at least a character flaw. Also, I think everything is portrayed in a rather stereotypical light. The stereotypical wise old man that's full of pearls of wisdom versus the stereotypiacl evil incarnate who's loaded down with thoughts of hate and revenge, etc. I'm not going to critique this book about a stereotypical male hero, because I don't think that's so stereotypical these days. See the above paragraph for what I think of the hero. The book has a quirky sense of humor that even adults can chuckle at. Even though there's all this stereotypical stuff in there, Rowling does put a few new twists on it. No doubt there's going to be the stereotypical showdown good vs. evil at the end of the series which nevertheless I am DYING to read. Now that we're past all the critiquing I give the book 4 stars and say that you should definately read the whole series.
| 
