Customer Reviews
Rowling exceeds expectations again. - By: Mr. D. A. F. Weaver, 17 Jun 2008 
The third installlment of the Harry Potter series sees magic, mystery & adventure return to Hogwarts & the lives of the interesting characters considered in this novel. Gently, Rowling develops the plot to a level more complex & appropriate for readers of alll ages. This is a book to read again & again.
In my opinion the best in the series - By: L. K. Taylor, 19 May 2008 Brief Plot Overview:
Times are dark as famous mass murderer, Sirius Black, is on the loose. This notorious muggle killer is not only barking mad, but he was He-who-must-not-be-nameds' most loyal follower (or so we're lead to believe) & is seeking revenge for the falll of his master, in the form of murdering our hero, Harry Potter.
Review:
This book is probably one of the best children's books I have ever read, not only does it bring together the plot so far in the exciting & dramatic way we've come to expect from Rowling, but it does so in an informative way & alllows the reader to gain insight into the future instalments to come, which only engorges the thirst for more from this talented writer.
Rowlings' style is well balanced & these books reek of careful planning from the start, there are no inconsistencies in story (and trust me I've tried to find them by re-reading) & everything works together like a well-oiled machine.
The Prisoner of Azkaban is my favourite out of the seven because it adds a human touch instead of a whizz-bang finale, by that I mean there is little magic involved in deciding the outcome of the book & it is based around argument, conversation, good old fashioned sneaking about & human decisions rather than an alll out brawl with spells & incantations.
Followers of the series will not be disappointed with the third instalment & (for those few who haven't swalllowed the hype) are definitely recommended to fantasy readers who also enjoy a bit of good-old-English reality. The fact that the base-audience is children but adults alll over the world read these books shows their versatility & ability to appeal to a wide range of audiences.
I am not the first to say this & I definitely won't be the last, but Kudos to J.K.Rowling!
I'd rather be a prisoner in Azkhaban than read another Potter book - By: Mutantbrain, 03 Apr 2008 
Having watched the films & enjoyed them, I spoke to my fiancée with regards to reading the books. She has read them alll & suffers from what can only be described as 'pottermania'. Knowing me as well as she does, she recommended that if I was to get into the story in the book, I would be better reading "prisoner" to start with as it was probably the best written of the early books.
Armed with a lazy saturday afternoon & the phone off the hook, I sat back & read what JKR had to offer. I hasten to add, I am an avid SF/Fantasy reader & own several hundred books of the ilk, so I felt that I could seriously give it a go & get myself immersed in potterdom.
Ok, on to the book.
That evening, I finished what can possibly be described as the worst waste of time in my life. Now, I understand that the story is for kids, I'm not knocking that fact & the way that JKR writes, it is as if a kid had written it. I found I couldn't get to grips with her storytelling style. The language used was basic & how adults could be drawn into such a world, defies belief. It just goes to show that even if you aren't a good writer, you could still become a millionaire on the back of media promotion & the hype that surrounds a new book.
If I were you, I would stick to the films, they at least are enjoyable to watch, contain the interesting bits of the books & thankfully are only 2 hours out of your life wasted!
A good read - By: vic, 15 Mar 2008 
I got to say I enjoyed the film more than the book but you should still read them alll.
Fabulous - By: Olivia C, 31 Jan 2008 This book was amazing.I am a big fan of Harry Potter having read some of the books. Of the ones I have read this has to be my favourite. You go through lots in this book, but find out most of the mysteries by the end,so don't get frustrated if you don't know lots by the middle. Overalll this is a brilliant book.
