There are two editions. The first was published in the UK by Bloomsbury Children's Books in June 1997. It was published in the American version in the USA in September 1998 by A. Levine Books / Scholastic Press. Arthur A. Levine wanted to change the title of the book published in the USA from "The Sorcerer's Stone" into "The Philosopher's Stone" to be more understandable to American readers. The spelling was changed, too. And there were vocabulary changes as well. The cover and internal art differ, too. Thomas Taylor, a British illustrator, created the cover design for the British edition and Mary Grandpré for the American version.

What kind of books are the Harry Potter books? What is the fundamental theme in them?
(about 40 words)(1 1/2 points)

The Harry Potter books are novels, fictional texts or fantasies, although there are some factual elements in them. Each novel is a part of an ongoing saga that describes a year at a wizard school.
There is a fundamental theme of good versus evil in the form of confrontations between Harry and Voldemort.

Describe the character Dudley. (content: what he looks like - his actions - his feelings) (about 90 words)(5 1/2 points)

Dudley is the Dursleys' son and Harry's cousin. He is a little tyke and seems to be spoiled by his parents. He gets 39 presents on his birthday but this is not enough. He spoils everything. He watches TV all day or bullies Harry with his gang or he pokes him with his school stick. He even kicks his mother and gives his father a sharp tap on the head with his stick.
Dudley looks like a baby angel, is very fat, has a large pink face, not much neck, small blue eyes and thick blond hair. He is short.
He is frightened of Hagrid because Hagrid gave him a curly pig's tail.

Strange things happened during the first decade of Harry's life. Which ones? (chapter 2, p 31 - 33) (about 60 words) (content : 5)(2 1/2 points)

Harry often dreamt of flying motorbikes.
When his aunt cut his hair so short that he was almost bald it was long again the next morning
When Petunia tried to force Harry to wear an old jumper, it shrank.
Once he was found on the roof of the school although he had only tried to hide behind a dustbin.
At the zoo he unwillingly freed a boa constrictor and could understand parceltongue.

Why does Vernon decide to move Harry to the smallest bedroom? (chapter 3, p 45) (about 30 words) (1 point)

Vernon decides to move Harry to the smallest bedroom because it is upstairs. The cupboard Harry sleeps in is downstairs. Upstairs he won't be able to get the letters before Vernon gets them.

What are "Goblins"? (chapter 5, p 82 - 83) (about 30 words) (content : actions - what they look like)(2 points)

Goblins run the wizard bank Gringotts. They wear a uniform of scarlet and gold. They are about a head shorter than Harry. They have pointed beards and long fingers and feet and speak Gobbledegook.

Sum up three stylistic devices J. K. Rowling uses in her book. (chapters 1 - 5) Write down an example for each. (about 60 words)(3 points)

Rowling uses wordplay in names e.g. Dinky Duddydums.
Voice is also a powerful literary tool such as the thick dialect uttered by Hagrid in chapter 4 on page 56: "Budge up, yeh great lump."
She uses nice colourful and powerful words in English, where you have to use more than one word in German such as "gasp", which means "nach Luft schnappen".

READING COMPREHENSION

What does Harry tell Ron about the Muggles in chapter 6? (p 110 - 112) (about 60 words) (content: 6)(3 points)

Harry tells Ron that the Muggles are horrible, maybe not all but especially his aunt, uncle and cousin. He also mentions that they always force him to wear Dudley's old clothes and never give him a birthday present. They also didn't tell him he is a wizard. They never give him any money for sweets. He also adds that in the Muggle world people just stay put in photos and they can't vanish.

Good luck to you!

Results:

1   2    3     4   5   6
============== Æ = 3,1
1   5   12    7   2   0

(1=the best mark; 6=the worst mark)