Customer Reviews
Poor translation of a great book 
2006-01-08
It's a shame that such a wonderful book was translated so poorly. The translator, Alicia Dellepiane, has a tendency to translate literally. For example, she translated to "have a fit" (referring to the baby, Dudley, on the second page of the book), as "tenía un berrinche." In Mexico it's "hacía un berrinche" and in much of Latin America it's "daba un berrinche." Errors such as this one abound. It's awkward for readers who know Spanish well and misleading for those who might pick up this book to study Spanish.
I rate the English version as five star.
Harry Potter y la Piedra Filosofal 
2005-08-29
Es dificil decir porque me gusta tanto este libro, y no sólo éste, pero los otros cinco. Habla acerca de tantas cosas de la vida real, pero de una manera muy interesante: racismo, amor, muerte, valentía, poder... Es a simple vista un libro infantil, pero cualquier persona que pueda leer a profundidad -y no a tanta profundidad- puede pasar por encima de toda la fantasía que encarna el libro en sí, de la magia, los hechizos, el castillo y los seres fantásticos. Y después descubrir lo que en realidad quieres transmitir el libro.
Exelente libro - Pesima traduccion 2005-04-12
Nunca se deberia traducir palabras como "embarrased" a "embarazado". No tiene sentido. Le quita la dicha a uno de leer este libro. Lo compre para leereselo a mi hijo pequeno y tengo que siempre cambiarle las palabras "al vuelo" para que las oraciones tengan sentido. Una lastima que una obra tan buena se feamente desmejorada por la pesima traduccion
magnífico 2004-12-29
Este libro me ha captivado desde el primer instante en que lo leí. Si usted es un hispanoparlante o estás aprendiendo español no tendrán ningún problema con este libro. He leído todos los libros de Harry Potter en español y cuando los comparo con las versiones americanas no veo nada perturbante. Recomiendo a todos que lean esta serie porque es tan buena que nunca querrán parar de leerla. And for you english speakers who are scared, dont be. This is after all a children's book. If you feel intimidated then have your spanish english dictionary handy because there are some words that they just dont teach you in spanish class, lol. If you have payed attention in your spanish classes and know all your grammar then the only thing that you might not know are some new words, and hey...thats how you learn anyway. happy reading
Great way to practice other languages 
2004-07-23
This is a great, easy, relaxing way to keep up your already advanced Spanish. It might also be a good way to greatly improve your intermediate Spanish. Keep a dictionary and a notepad handy for those new vocabulary words. Or don't. After a little while of recording new words, I finally quit and just read for the pleasure of it, deciphering words by context. Sometimes I grabbed the English version to check a phrase. That worked well, too. In short, for use as a language builder and confidence builder, I highly recommend this book to you. However, if you're hoping to comprehend the complexities of grammar, there are just enough strange turns of phrase in this book that I would say this is not your first source for grammar lessons.
Great Read 2008-05-27
I am an obsessive Harry Potter fan, and a 3rd year spanish speaker. I've read the first book almost too many times to count, and decided to mix it up a bit and give my self a challenge (my parents didn't want me to waste my time reading it again.) I've been keeping my english copy, dictionary, and notepad close to learn new vocab. I feel that reading this has been a great way to get better at spanish quicker. Slowly but surley, I've been using my english copy less and less. I reccomend it for anyone who wants to get better at their spanish in a fun, familiar way. (As an added bonus, I got extra credit in spanish class for reading it!)
Harry Potter in Spanish 2008-02-11
This book is great especially if you have already read it in English. I use it for an upper level Spanish class where we also discuss relationships to myths, significance of colors, foreshadowing, grammar and vocabulary,
Excellent!!! 2008-01-19
Being that it was used and the price was great, I just couldn't pass it up. The book was in excellent condition and looked new and my aunt loved it, being from Mexico and unable to get a lot of these books, she was so happy to have received it and can't wait for the other ones. Thank you for making her Christmas memorable.
Great for enjoyment and for the classroom 2007-04-11
I've read all the Harry Potter books in English, and I've always wanted to read them in Spanish, since I teach Spanish. I am currently teaching lower-level Spanish classes, one of which is the highest level of the lower levels. We are reading "La piedra filosofal" as a class, and, although my students are at different levels, the benefit to reading it is that they all know the story in English, and that helps their comprehension tremendously. Some students are moving slower than others, but they're really enjoying reading something that "real Spanish people" (their words) read. Definitely a good choice for intermediate level Spanish students as an introduction to advanced reading and literature.
Great Way to Brush Up on Spanish 2007-01-03
I studied Spanish and college many (I mean many) years ago and have been trying to relearn the language. I remember the basic grammar but my vocabulary is pretty weak. I decide to read Spanish books geared for young adults and found the entire Harry Potter series (I made it through the first 4 so far) to be truly enjoyable reading.
Of the four I read, this and the second (Chamber of Secrets), were the lightest and the easiest reading. The third (Prisoner of Askaban)and especially the fourth (Goblet of Fire)increased in length and my speed in Spanish is pretty slow, so they took longer to read. The fifth (Order of the Phoenix) and six (Half Blooded Prince) are about 900 pages so I am pretty intimidated to tackle them in Spanish. I will read them in English and move on to some other Spanish books.
After reading these I viewed the DVD's of the films. They have the audio track in Spanish so you can train your ear, too.
The books follow the English versions almost exactly, so you can have a copy of it around to refer to if you find yourself confused about a certain phrase or sentence.
