Customer Reviews

Deluxe Harry Potter UK/Bloomsbury Publishing Vol 1-7 Boxed Set (The Complete Harry Potter Collection)

5 star:		(647)
4 star:		(138)
3 star:		(59)
2 star:		(42)
1 star:		(88)

 

 

I, like many other people, used to dislike Harry Potter. I had never actually read the books, but for some reason looked down on Potter fans, thinking them to be a bit off color. I was certain that the whole thing was highly overrated and that it had been blown way out of proportion (like Twilight).

I could not have been more wrong. I finally read the books at the continuous urging of a friend in my junior year of high school, and they have become my favorite books of all time. I have already reread all seven books and stood in line for hours to see the midnight premiere of the newest movie.

When is the last time you have read a book and instantly wanted to pick it up and read it again? It doesn't happen often.

I can't even begin to tell you how incredible these books are. Not only are they very entertaining, but they are filled with the important themes of good vs. evil, the power of love, and the value of good choices. The characters in this book have become part of my life.

If you are at all hesitant to read this series because of its classification as a 'fantasy' series, I can assure you that you will not be disappointed. Yes, the book is about wizards and magic, but you would be shocked at how quickly the story pulls you in.

I can only ask you to PLEASE read the first book. If you like it, keep reading. If you don't, keep reading. The books get better as they progress, and I feel that the final chapters of the last book are some of the best reading I have ever done.

Also, do not judge these books from the movies. Everybody knows that the book is always better than the movie, and it's the same case here. The movies are great, but you need to read the books to fully appreciate what's happening and become a true Potter fan.

There's no question that the contents of the books inside this so-called chest are of the highest order. The entire Harry Potter epic was ingenious, brilliant, engaging, and encouraged hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of young readers to read when they might have rather played with their Xbox.

But this is about the packaging, and the packaging is just horrid.

I wasn't expecting something that was as heavy and substantial as, say, a pirate's chest, but I certainly was hoping that the box was more sturdy than a few flaps of cardboard rather cheaply assembled, and easily DISassembled.

I bought this so that I would have a full set of unread hardcovers with the original artwork, for the sake of posterity. In one of the worst marketing decisions I've seen regarding the Harry Potter series, the publishers thought it would be a good idea to include the extras (decals and whatnot - things I'm not interested in) shrink wrapped with the books. To get at them, you have to tear the shrink wrap, and thus compromise the books over time (a long period of time, and admittedly not much would be compromised).

Also, the clasp on the box was cheap plastic. Horrible. I almost broke it when undoing it. Is a metal clasp too much to ask for? Apparently it is.

I'm not completely dissatisfied with the purchase, because the books are phenomenal. I would have purchased a compilation of all seven books at some point, but I wish I had waited until they offered such a product without the sadly and unfortunately shoddy "chest". When I bought this product, I absolutely, 100% was buying the packaging, and the packaging was dismal.

I am a big Harry Potter fan and am no less than thrilled to pieces to finally own the complete set of books. (and in hardback no less) The books in this collector's set are the same books (content, artwork, cover and all) that have been sold before individually.

Yet I'm somewhat disappointed, if not slightly disillusioned that the "special collectors case" was a huge letdown. Given the obvious fact that Harry is huge worldwide, it would had behooved the publishers to do right by this commemorative set and make the case out of engineered wood (at the very least!) Instead they opted for the cheaper route and decided to make it out of... drum roll please.... CARDBOARD!

I dunno, maybe I was expecting to much?! (sigh...) 5 stars for Harry & minus one for the presentation...

I ordered this set to complement my hardcovers. I bought and read them all with great anticipation as each was released, but figured having the entire set in paperback would make future readings less cumbersome and more portable for one who is on the go a lot. Plus the price is good. Also, there is nothing wrong with the physical quality of the set I received. I inspected each book and the case closely after reading the first review. All look good!

These are great books, and definitely worth having for the collector. This is not a review of the books, but a review of the price. You are getting ripped off if you pay over $200 for these books. You can buy this exact set on amazon.co.uk which is the british version of amazon for 120 pounds plus shipping (which at the exchange rate today is equal to $176 plus shipping). So please look at the amazon.co.uk website like i did and save yourself a whole lot of money. Buyer Beware of sellers like this trying to con you into thinking they are giving you a deal.

First off let me start by saying DO NOT buy from these sellers, they are con artists trying to make a quick buck. You can buy this same set from Amazon.co.uk and even with expedited shipping it is less than half of this price.

Now on to the books themselves; They are extremely beautiful books. Cloth bound with gilt edges and ribbon bookmarks. The books seem very sturdy and have nice pages, they aren't as thick as the pages on the american editions, but are not by any means cheap.

The only real differences between these editions and the american editions are the covers and just a few words that are slightly changed here and there, also these editions do not have chapter art work.

I would recommend these books to any die hard Harry potter fans and collectors, not everyone will appreciate them. Overall I love them and am very glad that I purchased them 5 star value for sure!!

When my oldest son was young, I had time to read him each of the books in this collection. Those of you with multiple children know that time becomes scarce as your family grows. I really wanted to be able to enjoy these stories with my younger children, but we are so busy. This audio collection is so amazing. Not only can I multi-task while we listen in the evening or driving to activities, but the quality of the cd's is fabulous. The performance by Jim Dale is unbelieveable. He has so many voices and maintains the integrity of the character throughout 7 books. My 7 year old keeps jumping ahead of the rest of the family, because he loves them so much. This is an expensive set of books, but it is well worth it. This collection is one that you will read or listen to over and over again, so the investment is worth it, in my opinion. I highly recommend it.

I agree with everyone who has written a review saying that this boxed set was VERY misleading in presentation. This is a given. The publishers should have made a stronger cardboard box, included felt in the lining of the box, and should have downright made the box out of wood or leather. This incredible seven book series deserves the highest quality of workmanship and we, as the loyal fans, deserve the best offer and the finest quality of product. We deserve the publisher's respect, as well. They should be ashamed of themselves.

If you are buying this set because you already have the books and want to get newer versions of them and are focusing moreso on the collector's box to house all of the books and keep them pristine, I recommend that you DO NOT buy this particular set. It is in no way up to standard and the box is very misleading as a "collector's" item.

However, if you are like me and this is your first set of these books and want a fabulous deal on all seven of the hardcover books, which averages out to $17.00 a book, then you might want to think twice.

Here is what I am doing with the cardboard box that they give you. I took out the inner cardboard box that the books are already placed in and I am housing the books inside of there on my bookshelf. The main portion of the box (or trunk) I am using to house all of my Harry Potter DVDs and any other collectables I might have so that they are all kept together in one place. The stickers that they give you can be used on all four corners to cover the gaps of the cardboard that they didn't do themselves. You could put all four house stickers on each corner side.

So, if you want this set solely as a collector's item, don't get it. Wait for another version to come out. If you are mainly focusing on the great deal on the hardcover books and not the box, you might want to go ahead with this offer.

This packaging is horribly cheap looking and feeling... because it is cheap, nothing more than cardboard and a plastic 'privacy lock'. Junk.

First of all, let me start out by clarifying that I cannot say enough wonderful things about the seven books in the Harry Potter series. J.K. Rowling's books are among the greatest children's novels ever written, and if you don't already own the entire series in hardcover, then this boxed set is definitely a good deal. However, if you're looking for a snazzy collectible item, you are in for a major disappointment.

When I first learned that a gift set of all the hardcover Harry Potter books was being released, I was thrilled. Even though I already own all of the books from this series in hardcover, the idea of owning a collectible gift set was very appealing to me, and I was more than willing to shell out extra money for something nice. Unfortunately, though, the quality of the packaging of this set is incredibly shabby. The seven beautiful books are lined up side by side in a flimsy cardboard box with a cheap plastic lock glued to one side. It's terrible! I think the publisher really missed the mark with this one. So many fans would pay top dollar for a beautiful Harry Potter gift set, but why would anyone want to invest in something that looks so crappy?

A lot of other reviewers have remarked that people shouldn't be grumbling over the packaging. I disagree. Boxed sets in general are supposed to be special. Look at all the fancy book and DVD boxed sets available on the market at any given time. People are paying for the books or movies themselves, but they're also paying for the presentation.

Overall, if you're just looking to buy a complete set of the books, you can't go wrong with this affordable gift set. However, if you're looking for a collector's item, pass this one up. I'm so glad I saw this gift set in person before I ordered it for myself...there is no way I'm buying it now.