Second Best cover art

Second Best

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 15 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

Second Best

By: David Foenkinos
Narrated by: Joe Thomas
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £12.24

Buy Now for £12.24

A magical imagining of the fate of a fictional boy whose life is shaped forever when he loses out on the role of Harry Potter.

It's 1999. Martin Hill is ten years old, crazy about Arsenal and has a minor crush on a girl named Betty. Then he makes it to the final two in the casting for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

In the end, the other boy is picked for the role of a lifetime. A devastated Martin tries to move on with his life. But how can he escape his failure, especially when it's the most famous film series in the world?

Foenkinos's smash-hit Second Best is a playful, poignant story about fate, loss and how the lives we wish we'd led might not be all they're cracked up to be . . .

©2023 David Foenkinos (P)2023 W.F. Howes Ltd
Coming of Age Dark Humour European Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction World Literature Comedy
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
All stars
Most relevant
It is such a great idea to show the other boys perspective and to highlight the mental health struggles associated with failure. Really enjoyed this book!

A lovely trip back to the Harry Potter world

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.