Denver Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Club |
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (1997)
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Characters and critters Harry Potter - an 11 year old boy Petunia and Vernon Dursley - Harry's "Muggle" Aunt and Uncle Dudley Dursley - Harry's "perfect" cousin, a spoiled brat (Rubeus) Hagrid - Keeper of the Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts Hedwig - Harry's snowy owl Ron (Ronald) Weasley - First-year student, redhead, friend of Harry Hermione Granger - First-year student, studious, friend of Harry Neville Longbottom - First-year student, has various small problems (Draco) Malfoy - First-year student, snotty, no friend of Harry's Crabbe and Goyle - thickset and mean looking friends of Malfoy Albus Dumbledore - Headmaster at Hogwarts Professor (Minerva) McGonagall - Transfiguation teacher, head of Gryffindor House Professor (Severus) Snape - Potions teacher, head of Slytherin House Professor Quirrell - Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, wears turban Professor Flitwick - Charms teacher Voldemort, also called You-Know-Who - evil wizard who killed Harry's parents Lily and James Potter - Harry's parents Nicolas Flamel - alchemist Oliver Wood - captain of Gryffindor Quidditch team Caretaker (Argus) Filch and his cat Mrs. Norris Peeves the Poltergeist - mischievous ghost Fluffy - Hagrid's huge three-headed dog Mountain troll - 12 foot monster Harry, Ron, and Hermione fight Fang - Hagrid's coward of a dog Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback - a dragon hatched by Hagrid Places and things Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry the Leaky Caudron - grubby looking pub, gateway to Diagon Alley Diagon Alley - Wizard street in London Gringotts - Wizards' bank, run by goblins 1 gold Galleon = 17 silver Sickles = 493 bronze Knuts - money Platform nine and three-quarters at King's Cross train station, London Hogwarts Express - train Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and they mean every flavor Chocolate Frogs and wizard collector cards Hogwarts Houses - Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slytherin The Sorting Hat - frayed and dirty pointed wizard's hat Quidditch - Wizard sport, played up in the air on broomsticks with four balls red Quaffle, 2 black Bludgers, and the golden snitch - balls in Quidditch Invisibility Cloak - Christmas gift of Harry's The Mirror of Erised - shows deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts The Forbidden Forest - home of unicorns and centaurs The Sorcerer's Stone - transforms metal to gold, produces Elixir of Life |
| Dan | 9 | Amy | 9 |
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10 Wow! Don't miss it 8-9 Highly recommended 7 Recommended 5-6 Mild recommendation 3-4 Take your chances 1-2 Below average; skip it 0 Get out the flamethrower! U Unfinishable or unreadable - Skipped or no rating given |
| Cheri | 9 | Barb | 9 | ||
| Aaron | 7 | Cynthia | 10 | ||
| Lindsey | - | Jackie | 9 | ||
| Kerry | 7 | Becky | 9 | ||
| Sara | 9 3/4 |
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Aaron's Commentary
J. K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The strength of this book is the writing style, reminiscent of Roald Dahl in its delightful excess. For example, Harry Potter isn't just disfavored by his stepparents, he's left to inhabit a broom closet while his stepbrother gets two rooms filled with toys and while a guest room lies dormant. The little details, like the faces moving about in photographs and chess pieces second-guessing the players, make this great fun to read for children and adults alike. The story was not as successful for me. Everything comes too easily for Harry. I never believed he was in trouble, and he never had to do anything remarkable to prevail. What do you think? Your comments are welcome. Please send them to vanaaron@excite.com |
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998) |
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999) |
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000) |
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003) |
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cover by Mary GrandPre Scholastic Press hardback 341 pages eighteen chapters |
cover by Mary GrandPre Scholastic Press hardback 435 pages twenty-two chapters |
cover by Mary GrandPre Scholastic Press hardback 734 pages thirty-seven chapters |
cover by Mary GrandPre Scholastic Press hardback 870 pages thirty-eight chapters |