Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Book 1

About This Product

Stephen Fry brings the richness of these magical stories to life in the original British recordings.Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'.Treat your ears to a performance so rich and captivating you'll imagine yourself in the halls of Hogwarts. Wherever you listen, the unmistakable voice of Stephen Fry is guaranteed to guide you ever more deeply into this magical story and transport you to the heart of the adventure.Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!Theme music composed by James HanniganHaving become classics of our time, the Harry Potter stories never fail to bring comfort and escapism. With their message of hope, belonging and the enduring power of truth and love, the story of the Boy Who Lived continues to delight generations of new listeners.

Product Details

Manufacturer

J.K. Rowling (Author), Stephen Fry (Narrator), Pottermore Publishing (Publisher) & 0 more

ASIN

B017V51FEG

Customer Reviews Summary

The first book is really fantastic, like all six of her books. I remember the first book I ever read was book 4 (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire). I started reading it, but I found the first chapter boring. I gave up. I'm never really in a reading mood and I know I should be, because everybody needs to read and exercise their brain.Anyway not long after, during an english lesson, where we spent the whole lesson reading in silence, I noticed one of my mates was reading one of the Harry Potter books. I remember it was book 3 (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). I remember asking him if the book was good. He said that it was briliant. Don't laugh but this somehow motivated me to read the 4th book I had at home. I started reading it, ignoring how boring I found the first chapter. Near towards the end of the first chapter, I got hooked onto it. I found myself reading it constantly, getting more and more interested. I found the book fantastic. I couldn't believe I had never read it sooner. I had to read the other three (book 5 wasn't out yet).Anyway the first book is a really good book. No it's more than really good. It's excellent. If you watched the film, then you must read the book. Because believe me when I say that the book is better than the film.It's about a boy (we know his name), who's spent 10 miserable years with his reltives the Dursley family. His uncle Vernon is always jumping down his throught, his aunt Petunia is always nasty, they both see him as filth and his cousin Dudley (about the same age) is always bullying poor Harry. Harry learns on his 11th birthday that he is a wizard. He's not just a wizard, but in the wizard world he's famous.His mum and dad were murdered by the most evil wizard of all time, Voldemort. After killing James and Lily Potter (Harry's parents) he attempted to kill Harry himself. Somehow Harry survived it, left with a permanent lightning shaped scar on his forehead. This somehow defeated Voldemort and Harry was only a baby.He goes to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, where he trains to be a wizard. He befriends a boy and a girl (Ron Weasley and Hermoine Granger). Ron is a really nice, loyal person and Hermoine is an annoying boffin, who's always siding with the teachers (the last person to trust if you were attempting to break school rules). Harry also makes his first enemy (Draco Malfoy; a nasty Slytherin kid. All the nasty ones end up in Slytherin House). Harry, Ron and Hermoine end up in Gryffindor house. The other two are Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.Soon Harry and his friends discover that Dumbledore's got something really valuable within Hogwarts (well protected) and someone (their No 1 suspect professor Snape; potions teacher who is nasty to the Gryffindors and is also head of Slytherin).This book is definetely worth reading and buying. Rowling did a fantastic job with this book. Not just the way it was written OR the story, but how she made the wizard life. Their lives are like ours, but with the use of magic. They have a ministry of magic for instance(the wizard govenment), wizard shops and their own sport Quiditch.That I found brilliant. There are Seven players on each team, that fly on broomsticks and there is four balls (a quaffle, two bludgers and a golden snitch) Two beaters hit the bludgers, protecting their team as the bludgers zoom around the pitch, trying to injure the players. Three chasers handle the quaffle and try to put it through one of the three hoops at the end of the pitch. The keeper defends them and the seeker catches the snitch, ending the game and awarding his/her team 150 points. The game was really well designed.The schools are similar to secondry schools. At secondry schools pupils have different subjects in different classrooms, with differnt teachers. The classrooms are designed for that subject. Hogwarts is the same, but with wizard subjects (charms, potions, etc). It's a well written book, inteligently done. One of the best books I've ever read. There's no chance in hell you'll regret getting this.