Choosing what books to read, and how to read them, can be a bit of a challenge. I chose Harry Potter because it was a high enough level to be interesting and contain lots of new vocabulary, without being so complicated that I couldn't understand any of it. Since I had read it before, the story was familiar to me, which made it easier to guess at what I didn't know. I think it was a good choice, though perhaps it was a bit ambitious - I began reading it when I had been studying Spanish for only a few months. Picture books may have been a little bit more my speed...
I was in Ecuador at the time so I purchased the book on my Kindle as it was the only option available. (Books are hard to find in the small towns in Ecuador, and when you do find them, they cost an absolute fortune!) If I had the choice I think I would go with a paperback every time. (I had wanted the audiobook but it was so much more expensive at the time that I wasn't willing to pay for it.)
It took a while. There is a ton of vocabulary in a fantasy novel that you won't find in many other places. I learnt the Spanish words for wand, cauldron, parchment and spell and eventually it started to stick. I've heard that it's better to just read a book through, picking out only the occasional common word to translate, but I have a hard time with that. I want to know what everything means and I want to know it now! ...even though I know I won't remember it all. I think I spent a little too much time reading beside my laptop, open to a Spanish dictionary. Translating every second word (minor exaggeration) was so incredibly time consuming that I would make it through a page or two and simply give up in exhaustion. I may have put it down for several months at a time in sheer unwillingness to spend a half hour on each page.
I've moved on to book number 2 now - Harry Potter y la cámara secreta. I'm approaching this one a little differently - I'll let you know how it works out when I'm done!
All and all, I would say that Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal was a good choice. I'd recommend it so long as you are at an intermediate level and enjoy that kind of book to begin with!
And maybe... just sit down and read the damn book. ;)
Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal
on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Chapters Indigo.
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