Day: August 14, 2011

5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, Harry Potter, Harry Potter, R, RATING, Read in 2011, Read-a-Long, SERIES

2011.44 REVIEW – Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

Tara

Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone
by J.K. Rowling

Copyright: 1997
Pages: 309
Rating: 5/5
Read: Aug 12 – Aug. 14, 2011
Challenge: TwentyEleven Challenge
Yearly Count: 44
Format: Print
Source: Personal copy

Blurb: Harry Potter has never been the star of a Quidditch team, scoring points while riding a broom far above the ground. He knows no spells, has never helped to hatch a dragon, and has never worn a cloak of invisibility. All he knows is a miserable life with the Dursleys, his horrible aunt and uncle, and their abominable son, Dudley – a great big swollen spoiled bully. Harry’s room is a tiny closet at the foot of the stairs, and he hasn’t had a birthday party in eleven years. But all that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives by owl messenger: a letter with an invitation to an incredible place that Harry – and anyone who reads about him – will find unforgettable. For it’s there that he finds not only friends, aerial sports, and magic in everything from classes to meals, but a great destiny that’s been waiting for him … if Harry can survive the encounter.

Review: This is the third time that I have read this book, it never ceases to amaze me. I am re-reading the series all over again as part of the Harry Potter Read-a-Long hosted by Pretty Deadly Reviews. In this first installment Harry finds out he’s a wizard. He has always known that he’s a little bit different from everyone else, strange things tend to happen around him when he gets angry. His early years have not been easy on him. His home life is about one step above abuse/neglect. He lives in a closet. His cousin is horrible to him. His aunt and uncle treat him like he’s such a burden. He never gets anything except Dudley’s hand-me-downs. He doesn’t have any friends. But all of this changes when he gets that invitation to study at Hogwarts. Suddenly, he has friends and is having the time of his life. But trouble always seems to find Harry, no matter where he goes, and it will be up to him and his new best friends, Ron and Hermoine, to keep a very valuable thing out of the wrong hands. I love this series and I’m so glad to be starting all over again!

Sunday Wrap-Up

Sunday Wrap-Up, August 14, 2011

Tara

Well here it is … time to write another edition of my weekly wrap-up. I know I sound like a broken record, but really, where are the days going? I have been reading up a storm the last two weeks! I don’t know what’s gotten into me … it’s like I woke up one day and decided to start reading again! It feels great! I knew I had been in a slump for a long time, and I don’t want to jinx it and say that I’m out of it … but I really hope that I am! This week I was finally able to get my LibraryThing account up to date with all of my TBR books. I am ashamed to have a final count. I’m not sure why I think I need all these books, but suffice it to say, there are 400+ physical books in this house that I have yet to read. Yikes. And I keep getting more in the mailbox all the time it seems. **Hello, my name is Tara, and I am a book-a-holic** I guess there are worse things to be addicted to 🙂 Anyway, I was also pretty active here on the blog. So in case you missed it:

  • I shared my mailbox … and I have yet to pre-schedule tomorrow’s edition because I am so ashamed…. but to be completely honest, the books that I received this past week were part of a big book box trade that I have had going with a friend on MysteryBookSwap for a couple of months. (As if that makes it sound that much better, lol).
  • I participated in WWW Wednesdays, something I hadn’t done in ages!
  • I posted about how I am starting to get negative feelings toward putting an actual number rating on my books. Come on, readers! I still need you to talk to me about how YOU handle rating books!!

And I posted THREE! reviews:

Right now I’m reading two books … Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Still Missing by Chevy Stevens. After I finish with oen of those books (probably HP), I will be jumping into a couple of e-books that I have to review as well as two other  library books I have checked out.