Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone Audiobook Review

by on in Magic

By J.K. Rowling

Narrated by Stephen Fry/ Jim Dale

Reviewed by Gabby

Harry Potter & The Philosopher's Stone (Book 1)

Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone (Book 1)

 

Get the Stephen Fry Audible version here.

Get the Jim Dale version on Audio CD here.

Get the Stephen Fry version on Audio CD here.

[Average: 4.6]

 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone Overview:

Harry Potter thinks he is an ordinary boy. He lives with his Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and cousin Dudley, who are mean to him and make him sleep in a cupboard under the stairs. Then Harry starts receiving mysterious letters and his life is changed forever. He is whisked away by a beetle-eyed giant of a man and enrolled at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The reason: Harry Potter is a wizard!

The first book in the “Harry Potter” series makes the perfect introduction to the world of Hogwarts.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone Audiobook Review:

STORY

CHARACTERS

NARRATORS

STORY

 

The Good:

These books are pure magic and a benchmark in the genre. J.K. Rowling takes a classic idea of young children heading to boarding school, and put’s it on it’s head, generally we would expect all the exciting things to happen while on holiday – but not this time.

The story follows Harry’s first year at Hogwarts, a school for witches and wizards. We enter in on a depressing scene with his relatives the Dursley’s (whom he lives with) and Harry’s general day to day struggle living in a muggle (non-magical) household.  At this point everything is confusing, and we know little, however everything is about to change and as a listener we are about to embark on a wild and captivating journey to discover Harry’s birthright.

The Harry Potter audiobooks series may have been written and narrated with children in mind, but that hasn’t stopped thousands of mums and dads giving the first book in the series a five star rating. Harry Potter and the Philosophers stone is an introduction into a world of of optimism and hope, where anything is possible. As a result, this book speaks to a younger audience naturally, however this is a must listen for everyone. How could you not want to live in a world like that?! The books are creative and fun.

 

The Bad:

There isn’t really anything bad to say about Harry Potter. Some may complain about the fact that Harry seems to have done nothing and yet accumulated fame, fortune, a reputation and a free broomstick, this annoyingly convenient. I will go so far as to say that the first book is the worst of the series, but I still consider it significantly better than most other books out there!

 

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CHARACTERS

 

The Good:

There are so many characters to like; and I’ll introduce the main ones to you briefly;

Harry Potter –  The hero. Harry is transformed into a powerful hero by the end. He is marked on the forehead with a lightning-shaped scar given to him by Voldemort. Harry is someone to fight for. He has relatively good morals, and is not perfect by any means. We see him try, try and fail, and then succeed time and time again.
Hermione Granger –  A teachers pet time, who studies a lot, and obeys all school rules. Hermione becomes friendly with Harry after she learns to value friendship over obedience and perfectionism.
Ron Weasley –   Ron is Harry’s first friend, they meet close to the beginning, and become close. He lacks Harry’s skill and charisma, but his loyalty is useful. Ron is a character you can really like, and probably my favourite character.
Hagrid –  A giant who works as a groundskeeper at Hogwarts. Hagrid is a well-meaning creature with more kindness than brains. He cares deeply for Harry.
Albus Dumbledore  –  The kind, wise head of Hogwarts. Though he is a famous wizard, Dumbledore is as humble down to earth character.
Voldemort  –  A great wizard gone bad. When he killed Harry’s parents, Voldemort gave Harry a lightning-shaped scar.
Draco Malfoy –  An arrogant student and Harry’s nemesis. Malfoy, is a rich snob from a long line of wizards who feels entitled to the Hogwarts experience. Draco Malfoy becomes someone you love to hate, similar to King Geoffrey in GOT.

 

The Bad:

Nothing bad of note.

 

NARRATOR

The Good:

There are two versions of the Philosopher’s Stone, one is narrated by Stephen Fry, the other Jim Dale. Below is our outline, and a video for comparison.

Stephen Fry makes the characters even more vivid. His voice for Hagrid is low, gruff and gentle, just what you would expect. Hermione sounds incredibly precocious and annoying but gradually becomes less so as the book progresses. The story wraps you in a warm cloak of positive feelings, happiness and a sense of belonging. Having Fry read such a lovely story to you makes it all the more comforting and enjoyable. Even though Harry Potter is J K Rowlings first book and her prose may be flawed in places, (particularly in the beginning describing life with the Dursleys) Harry Potter is undoubtedly a classic made even more magical by Stephen Fry. I highly recommend this audiobook for all ages.

Jim Dale is another fantastic narrator. Born in England, Dale also has an English accent. Dale is a voice artist, and definitely weighted towards to the dramatized end of the scale. Dale invites a sense of urgency in his voice, and has you on your toes. This increased dramatization, although predominantly great, I feel it is sometimes a little over the top.

Dale is magician in character range; he created 134 voices for the Harry Potter series. This series has given Dale more awards than any narrator previous. His prestige, and breadth of bestseller coverage is rather astonishing.

The Bad:

Some people can find Stephen Fry dry and nasally, and some people can find Jim Dale a little over the top. For the US audience I would suggest go with Dale. There is definitely a consensus in the US market that Dale is more preferred. Otherwise I would go with Fry, however i am biased as this is where i started.

 

 

 

More Harry Potter Reviews

  1. Harry Potter and Philosopher’s Stone
  2. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
  3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
  4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
  5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
  6. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
  7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

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