Georgia A. Morgan 2008-11-17
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Although I had given the first HP book to a nephew the year it was published, I waited to purchase and read the books until (1) my son was old enough and (2) the series was finished and I could get matching hard copies. A friend ordered this for me through her library connections. It took ages to arrive; forunately for me, I had no idea the box was supposed to be wooden, so I was not initially disappointed by that. However, now that we've begun reading them (my son could easily read them himself but I still read to him at bedtime, and it's really fun to discover Harry's world along with him), I was stunned and insulted to discover that the prose had been tampered with, dumbed down and 'Americanized' for stupid Yanks. I am an American but I know what a packet of crisps is, and when 'chips' has been substituted for 'crisps,' among other things. So now, having spent over $100 for this set, I am going to have to spend more to get the REAL thing. How disappointing. What on earth were the people at Scholastic thinking?! Moreover, why did JK Rowling allow them to do this? I cannot fathom any reason why perfectly ordinary English should have to be changed. Or is it that we really are that stupid, insular, and arrogant that we cannot even read English from other English speaking countries anymore? I am truly sorry that my son will have to read a watered down, adulterated version of these classic stories. What a letdown.
