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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone ()


Amazon.com Top 100 Books of the Millenium

The legend of the lost prince/princess, an unsuspecting youth who will one day claim his birthright, is one of the archetypal stories of Religion and Myth.  From Oedipus to Moses, Christ to Arthur this basic theme recurs so often that it must have some significant meaning that resonates within the human soul.  My guess would be that the pull it exerts is twofold, escapist on the one hand and metaphorical on the other.  In terms of pure entertainment and escapism, every day existence was so brutal for so long, and society so rigidly stratified, that it would have been natural for folks to want to believe that they were miscast as peasants or slaves and that one day someone would swoop in and reveal that a horrible mistake had been made, transforming the peon into a prince in a trice.  As metaphor--every young person goes through a period when they feel awkward or like a misfit.  The lost prince story reassures them that a totally different being lies locked within them who will one day be recognized and honored.  The endurance and resonance of this primordial storyline must trace to some such fundamental human yearnings for reassurance.  J.K. Rowling then has taken this basic theme, added to it the elements of an English Boarding School story and heaped on healthy dollops of magic--no wonder this book has sold googolplex copies to both kids and adults.

Of course, no mere formula suffices to explain all of the success.  The story is smart, witty and imaginative and, by not condescending to the children who are the natural audience, she has written a book that adults too will enjoy.

GRADE: A+

Dorothy C. Judd's Review:

As I read this book, I imagined myself reading it aloud to a classroom of third or fourth graders.  They loved it - and so did I!  One roots for Harry Potter from the beginning and breathlessly  participates in each of his adventures. The author's command of descriptive language creates terrific characters  and challenging situations. There is just enough grossness to satisfy kids and not enough violence to alarm parents. The owl messengers, the invisible cloak, the sorcererís stone, the Quidditch game, the classes Harry must take: all capture the imagination. And speaking of imagination, if it is true that kids are reading these Potter books, I, for one rejoice. I just hope they get a chance to picture all the marvelous characters, implements, and situations in this book before they are pictured for them in a movie or video!

This is a marvelous book for family reading-aloud: a chapter a night, if you can get away with that little.  Kids love to be read to even after they can read for themselves!

(Reviewed:)

Grade: (A)


Websites:

J. Rowling Links:

    -WIKIPEDIA: J. K. Rowling
    -AUTHOR SITE: https://www.jkrowling.com/
    -FEATURED AUTHOR: J.K. Rowling (NY Times Book Review)
    -PODCAST: Out Now: The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling (The Free Press, February 21, 2023)
    -ESSAY: J. K. ROWLING’S WITCH TRIALS: THE PULL OF FUNDAMENTALISM: The controversies swirling around JK Rowling illustrate that fundamentalist thinking is not unique to the religious right. (Dan Ellsworth, 3/06/23, Public Square)
    -ESSAY: J. K. Rowling and the Hate Monster (Helen Dale, 6/24/24, Law & Liberty)
    -ESSAY: J. K. Rowling's Moment of Truth (Rachel Liu, 6/08/23, Law & Liberty)
    -ESSAY: J.K. Rowling Addresses Her Critics: As more people burned her books over the weekend, the author confronts the idea that she is ‘dangerous’ and ‘transphobic.’ (The Free Press, March 28, 2023)
    -ESSAY: JK Rowling works her magic again: She has launched a new feminist revolution (JULIE BINDEL, 12/12/22, UnHerd)
    -ESSAY: JK Rowling sees through her enemies: Her new book is more than a persecution fantasy (KAT ROSENFIELD, 9/02/22, UnHerd)
   
-ESSAY: THE STRANGE FATE OF HAMILTON AND HARRY POTTER (Carl R. Trueman, 1 . 6 . 22, First Things)
    -ESSAY: Harry Potter And The Politics Of Diversity (Jeroen Bouterse, 4/13/20, 3 Quarks Daily)
    -ESSAY: Harry Potter and the Childish Adult: Why do Harry Potter books satisfy children and--a much harder question--so many adults? (A.S. BYATT, 7/07/03, NY Times)
    -ESSAY: Quidditch quaintness: The values that triumph in the Harry Potter books are those of a nostalgic, conservative Little Britain (Richard Adams, June 18, 2003, The Guardian)
    -ESSAY: Harry Potter and the fascist bully-boys (Rod Liddle, June 25, 2003, The Guardian)
    -ESSAY: JK Rowling is no antisemite: For most British Jews she is a heroine (Stephen Pollard, 1/06/21, UnHerd)
    -ESSAY: JK Rowling, goblins and anti-Semitism (Daniel Johnson, 1/https://www.spiked-online.com/2022/01/06/the-grotesque-assault-on-jk-rowling/07/22, The Article)
    -ESSAY: The grotesque assault on JK Rowling: So now she’s anti-Semitic, too? This smear campaign is increasingly unhinged. (Frank Furedi, 1.06/22, spiked)
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-ESSAY: JK Rowling and the goblins of ire (Nicole Lampert, 1/06/22, CapX)
    -ARTICLE: Countdown in Times Sq.: 3-2-1, It's 870 More Pages of Potter (N.R. KLEINFIELD, June 21, 2003, NY Times)
    -ESSAY: Breaking the Spell (CHARLES McGRATH, June 22, 2003, NY Times Magazine)
    -REVIEW: of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (MICHIKO KAKUTANI, June 21, 2003, NY Times)
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-REVIEW: of Ink Black Heart (Darragh McManus , Independent ie)
    -REVIEW: of Ink Black Heart (Anne Marie Scanlon, Independent ie)
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FILM


   
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-FILM REVIEW: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian)

Book-related and General Links:
   -Harry Potter Net
    -Featured Author: J. K. Rowling : With News and Reviews From the Archives of The New York Times
    -JK (Joanne Kathleen) Rowling - Author Page (The Guardian)
    -BOOK SITE : Harry Potter: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Scholastic.com)
    -BOOK SITE : harry potter and the chamber of secrets (Harry Potter Books uk)
    -INTERVIEW: JK Rowling with Evan Solomon (CBC InfoCulture)
    -INTERVIEW :  Success of Harry Potter bowls author over (October 21, 1999, CNN)
    -INTERVIEW :  Matt Seaton meets JK Rowling (18 Apr 2001. The Guardian)
    -INTERVIEW : Harry, Jessie and me (Simon Hattenstone, July 8, 2000, The Guardian)
    -Harry Potter Special (The Guardian)
    -Family.org: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
    -LITERATURE GUIDE : Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Nancy Polette)
    -PROFILE : Of magic and single motherhood|  (MARGARET WEIR, Salon)
    -PROFILE : J. K. Rowling (Linda Richards, January Magazine)
    -SAMPLE CHAPTER (Scholastic, Inc.)
    -DISCUSSION GUIDE (Scholastic, Inc.)
    -Meet Harry Potter (Scholastic, Inc)
    -A Muggle's Guide to Harry Potter (BBC)
    -Harry Potter : Culture and Religion
    -Harry Potter Gallery
    -Harry Potter's Realm of Wizardry
    -Harry Potter Realm
    -The Leaky Cauldron : Harry Potter Weblog
    -MuggleNet
    -ARTICLE : Debut author and single mother sells children's book for  £100,000 (Dan Glaister, 8 July 1997, The Guardian)
    -ESSAY : Veni, Vidi, Voldemort (MAUREEN DOWD, December 9, 2001, NY Times)
    -ESSAY: Harry Potter's Magic (Alan Jacobs, First Things)
    -ESSAY :  Why We Like Harry Potter : The series is a 'Book of Virtues' with a preadolescent funny bone (Christianity Today, January 10, 2000)
    -ESSAY : Opinion Roundup: Positive About Potter : Despite what you've heard, Christian leaders like the children's books. (Christianity Today)
    -ESSAY : Finding the Spiritual Power of Harry Potter  (Shelvia Dancy, Religion News Service, Saturday, June 30, 2001)
    -ESSAY : Harry Potter: A Wizard's Return (George F. Will, July 4, 2000)
    -ESSAY : Is Harry Potter Evil? :  In an editorial, Judy Blume says that the real danger is not in books such as Harry Potter, but in laughing off those who would ban them (Judy Blume, October 22, 1999, NY Times)
    -ARTICLE :  Don't Give Us Little Wizards, the Anti-Potter Parents Cry (JODI WILGOREN, November 1, 1999, NY Times)
    -ESSAY : The Reality of the Fantasy in the Harry Potter Stories (RICHARD BERNSTEIN, November 30, 1999, NY Times)
    -ESSAY : Besotted With Potter (William Safire, January 27, 2000, NY Times)
    -ESSAY: Harry Potter's girl trouble: The world of everyone's favorite kid wizard is a place where boys come first  (Christine Schoefer, Salon)
    -ESSAY: The Playing Fields of Hogwarts (Pico Iyer, NY Times Book Review)
    -ARTICLE: Booksellers Grab a Young Wizard's Cloaktails (DOREEN CARVAJAL, NY Times)
    -ESSAY: Hands off Harry Potter! First fundamentalists complained, now a feminist chimes in. Have any of them even read the books? (Chris Gregory, Salon)
    -ARTICLE: `Potter' series spurs growth in kid books (DOREEN CARVAJAL, New York Times)
    -ARTICLE: Author's Childhood Friend Says He Was Inspiration for Harry Potter Friend Ian Potter recalls playing make-believe with JK Rowling in the mid-1970s; his claim follows author Nancy Stouffer's allegation that Harry is based on her own1984 book (Helen M. Jerome and Jerome V. Kramer, Book Magazine)
    -ESSAY: Muddled Muggles :  Conservatives Missing the Magic in Harry Potter (Chris Mooney, The American Prospect)
    -ESSAY: The Subtlety of Hogwarts? Give a Wizard a Break!  Blessedly, Phase 1 of this year's Harry Potter frenzy has concluded. But hold on. Relief may be premature. For now, it seems, it is time to settle in for Phase 2: Potter deconstruction.
    -ESSAY : Troubled Harry :  Harry Potter's appeal isn't the cutesy magic but his struggle with the anxieties of pubescence; adults struggle with a childhood without innocence (DANIEL MENDELSOHN, New York)
    -ESSAY : Harry Potter and the Closet Conservative (Richard Adams, Voice of the Turtle)
    -ESSAY : Just wild about Harry (Mona Charen, July 11, 2000)
    -ESSAY :  Enchanting stories don't always need magic (Michelle Malkin, July 19, 2000)
    -ESSAY : Harry Potter Books Teach Witchcraft to Children (Chuck Morse)
    -ESSAY : "Is Harry Potter Too Wicca for Kiddies to Read?". (Rita Delfiner, New York Post, September 26, 2000)
    -ESSAY : More Clay than Potter (Anne McCain  and Susan Olasky, 10/30/99, World)
    -ESSAY : Why Harry Potter doesn't cast a spell over me (Anthony Holden, June 25, 2000, The Observer )
    -ESSAY :  A Novel That Is a Midsummer Night's Dream (STEVEN R. WEISMAN, July 11, 2000, NY Times)
    -ESSAY : Muddled Muggles : Conservatives Missing the Magic in Harry Potter (Chris Mooney, 7.11.00, American Prospect)
    -ESSAY : Cultural Phenomena: Dumbledore's Message (James A. Morone, December 17, 2001, American Prospect)
    -ESSAY : Thank You, Harry Potter! : The Harry Potter books, by depicting a world in which good triumphs over evil, give us strength to face real enemies. (Dianne L. Durante, November 5, 2001, Ayn Rand Institute)
    -ESSAY : Is Harry Potter A Harmless Fantasy Or Wicca Training Program?  (Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, August 20, 2001, ChristiansUnite.com)
    -ESSAY : Apocalyptic fundamentalists set to shove Harry Potter aside (Martin Kettle, June 9, 2000, The Guardian )
    -ESSAY : What the Muggles Donít Get : Why Harry Potter succeeds while the morality police fail. (James Morone, Brown Alumni Magazine, July 2001)
    -Charming stories,  OR a demonic plot? : Reviews, bannings, attempts at censorship, and other muggle* matters (ReligiousTolerance.org)
    -ESSAY : Moby Dick on a Broom (Gail Collins, July 7, 2000, NY Times)
    -ESSAY : 'Harry Potter,' the wizard of children's book sales (Kathy Boccella, Philadelphia Inquirer)
    -ESSAY : Magic, mystery and the quest for universal truth (Pat Kane, Sunday Herald)
    -ESSAY : Fear of Not Flying: Harry Potter and the Spirit of the Age (Lee Siegel, New Republic)
    -ESSAY : Spot the source: Harry Potter explained (Wendy Doniger, February 10, 2000, London Review of Books)
    -ESSAY : Digested read: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (August 25, 1998, The Guardian)
    -DISCUSSION : Harry Potter Message Board (Cinescape)
    -ARCHIVES : Harry Potter (Jam! Showbiz)
    -ARCHIVES : Salon.com Directory | Harry Potter
    -ARCHIVES : "Harry Potter" (Find Articles)
    -ARCHIVES : "Harry Potter" (Mag Portal)
    -REVIEW ESSAY : Iím Hookedó How I found ó and why Iím staying with ó Harry Potter Ö (Ramesh Ponnuru, November 17, 2001, National Review)
    -REVIEW: of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (CHARLES TAYLOR, Salon)
    -REVIEW: of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Michael Winerip, NY Times Book Review)
    -REVIEW: of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone  (EILEEN HEYES, News Observer)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book Page)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone  by J.K. Rowling (Claire Martin, Denver Post)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Heather Mallick, Toronto Sun)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (Sally Estes, ALA Booklist)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (USA Today)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (Audrey Schafer, Medical Humanities)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (Etta Wilson, Book Page)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (Michael Hines , Ed's Internet Book Review)
    -REVIEW : of Chamber of Secrets (Sharon Galligar Chance, Book Browser)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Cathy Sova, Mystery Reader)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Gregory Maguire, NY Times Book Review)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Claire Armitstead, The Guardian)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Linda Richards, January Magazine)
    -REVIEW : of Prisoner of Azkaban (Claire Martin, Denver Post)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Janet Maslin, NY Times)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Stephen King, NY Times Book Review)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling (Chris Woodhead, booksonline)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Isabel Lyman, My Right Start)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Linda Richards, January Magazine)
    -REVIEW : of JK Rowling: a biography by Sean Smith (Nicholas Tucker, Independent uk)
    -REVIEW : of THE MAGICAL WORLDS OF HARRY POTTER by DAVID COLBERT (January Magazine)
 

FILM :
    -FILMOGRAPHY : J. K. Rowling (Imdb.com)
    -OFFICIAL SITE : Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (uk)
    -OFFICIAL SITE : Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Warner Bros, US)
    -INFO : Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (2001) (Imdb.com)
    -INFO : Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) (Imdb.com)
    -NY Times Special : Spotlight on Harry Potter
    -ESSAY : Harry Potter Takes on the Smart People (Andrew Ferguson, 11/20/01. Bloomberg)
    -ESSAY : "Harry Potter: The Storm Breaks" (John G. Nettles , 11/15/01,PopMatters)
    -ESSAY : A Time for Harry Potter : Hollywood sets to contribute to our post-September 11 culture. (Thomas S. Hibbs,  October 27-28, 2001, National Review)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (James Berardinelli's Reel Views)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Andrew O'Hehir, Salon)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter (David Edelstein, Slate)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter (John Podhoretz, National Review)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter (Stanley Kauffmann, New Republic)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (J. Hoberman, Village Voice)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Todd R. Ramlow, PopMatters)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Scott Von Doviak, Culture Vulture)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Elvis Mitchell, NY Times)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Claudia Puig, USA TODAY)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Desson Howe, Washington Post)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Bob Graham, SF Chronicle)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (Claire Bickley, Toronto Sun)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian uk)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Philip French, The Observer uk)
    -REVIEW : of Harry Potter : Witchcraft Repackaged (Douglas Downs, Christian Spotlight on the Movies)