50. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone– J.K. Rowling
A re-read, because I want to re-read books 5, 6, and 7, and apparently I don’t like to do the anything the easy way. This book didn’t stand up to re-reading all that well. It’s just not very well done, even if it did spawn the whole series, the movies series (which I enjoy), the EMPIRE. As I was reading I was struck with all the things that were changed to make the film of the first book. The screenwriter(s?) got it right—which is something you don’t get the chance to say that often.

By the way, yes: the Philosopher’s Stone. My friend Debby was trying to get me to read the series and I wouldn’t, so she played dirty. She went to England and brought me a the first book, the English paperback edition, as a present. Dirty! It worked. Who’s not going to read a book given to them as a gift? Carried across an ocean? My God, I’ve read much worse things given to me as presents. (Mitch Albom. My sister didn’t know better, but I read it and I forgave her.) So philosopher instead of sorcerer, and several of my HP books are English paperbacks, because when I went to England a few years later, I stocked up.