What was the first Harry Potter novel, published by Bloomsbury in 1997, called in the United Kingdom?

The first Harry Potter novel, published by Bloomsbury in the United Kingdom in 1997, was called Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

The book introduced Harry Potter, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and major characters including Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Bloomsbury published it in Britain on 26 June 1997, and it became the starting point of a seven-novel series.

In the United States, Scholastic changed the title to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone before publication in 1998. The story is substantially the same, but the title difference can cause confusion when readers compare British and American references.

The novel won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize and the British Book Award for Children’s Book of the Year. Its success led to six sequels, film adaptations, translations, audiobooks, and a worldwide publishing phenomenon.