Kiddo’s Corner Reviews is my new feature here at The Overstuffed Bookcase, where my 6-year-old son reviews children’s books!

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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Illustrated Edition
Written by: J.K. Rowling
Illustrated by: Jim Kay
Published by: Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.
Published: 2015
Where we got it: Purchased from the Kiddo’s school’s Scholastic Book Fair

The beloved first book of the Harry Potter series, now fully illustrated by award-winning artist Jim Kay.

For the first time, J. K. Rowling’s beloved Harry Potter books will be presented in lavishly illustrated full-color editions. Rowling herself selected artist Jim Kay, whose over one hundred illustrations make this deluxe format as perfect a gift for the child being introduced to the series as for the dedicated fan.

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. (Cover and synopsis from Goodreads.)

First Thoughts…

(Note: I spent about a month and a half reading this book to the Kiddo, only reading about 5 or 6 pages a night to him. Then later we sat down to write this review.)

Kiddo: (Looking at the cover) I like that picture. The cover. It’s cool.

Me: So do you remember what you knew about Harry Potter before I read this book to you?

Kiddo: Sometimes I’ve been playing the game on the Wii, so I kind of know how he got his scar, but I didn’t know anything else.

Me: But before that, you knew Harry was a wizard, right?

Kiddo: Uh huh.

Me: And you knew there were books and movies.

Kiddo: Uh huh. Well, you told me that.

Me: And this is your first time reading the book.

Kiddo: No, you read it to me, I didn’t read it to you.

Me: Right.

A Bit More Detail…

Me: So what is this book about?

Kiddo: It is about Harry Potter trying to get the Sorcerer’s Stone.

He didn’t remember a lot of the story since it had been a week or so since we read it, so I went over the book with him again.

Me: What’s your favorite part?

Kiddo: The Mirror of Erised part.

Me: Why?

Kiddo: Because he sees what he wants and I like the picture because there’s all these chairs. It’s really funny.

Me: What’s your least favorite part?

Kiddo: When Harry falls down into the vines, you know? And Hermione has to do a spell to try to get them out.

Me: Why’s that your least favorite part?

Kiddo: Because I was worried they were going to get hurt. 

Me: So who’s your favorite character?

Kiddo: Harry.

Me: Why?

Kiddo: Because he has a scar, and he has an invisibility cloak. And because he has an owl.

Me: Okay… Who is your least favorite character?

Kiddo: Snape.

Me: Why?

Kiddo: Because he’s mean to Harry. That’s my least favorite picture.

Me: The Snape picture?

Kiddo: Yeah.

Me: So what house do you think you’d be in at Hogwarts?

Kiddo: Hufflepuff. Because I’m nice.

Me: Yeah, Hufflepuffs are nice. And so are you.

Final Thoughts…

Me: So how many stars would you give the book?

Kiddo: 2,068. No. 2,088.

Me: Why so many stars?

Kiddo: Because I liked the book so much.

Me: What about the pictures?

Kiddo: So awesome (Mom, put a whole bunch of exclamation points). SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A little note about the Illustrated Edition: On the inside, it’s not as Americanized as the other non-illustrated editions that were published in the US. Yes, the stone is called the “Sorcerer’s Stone” and not the “Philosopher’s Stone” like in the UK versions, but other than that, it seems to be very British. There’s nothing wrong with that, in fact I’ve always wanted to own the British versions myself, but it made it hard when reading it out loud to my son. I stumbled on several of the words myself (like how Harry, Ron, and Hermione would “revise” for their exams instead of “study”) and I had to explain a lot to my son. But then again, there were plenty of words that I had to explain to him, simply because he just doesn’t have a huge vocabulary yet.

The Kiddo gave 2,088 stars to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling, illustrated by Jim Kay, but I’m going to translate that over into my star ratings and give it:

5 huge stars from both of us. This first book isn’t my favorite in the series, but it is my favorite series of all time, and I’m so excited to finally be sharing the magic of the Harry Potter books with my son, and the illustrated version definitely adds to that magic.