My Review of Book 7 (SPOILERS!!)

After digesting and re-reading certain parts of the book, I am ready to write what I thought of it. To read, simply highlight the hidden text below.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was not a disappointment at all. I can’t say that it was my favorite book of the series, but J.K. Rowling did an excellent job putting all the pieces of the puzzle together and giving us a fast-paced, riveting story. What I am most pleased with is that there is still so much left to discuss. We now know that all is right in the Wizarding world and Harry defeated Voldemort, but Rowling left it so that there are still items for us fans to ponder.

Dumbledore turned out to be a much more complex character than originally expected. In the first six books he appeared to be an all-knowing, infallible hero, but there were times during Hallows when I began to dislike him. Specifically when we reading about Snape’s memories and Dumbledore so casually mentioned that Harry was going to have to die in order to defeat Voldemort. He was redeemed in the next chapter, however, and I could then understand his intentions. While Dumbledore was a good person overall, he was susceptible to making errors and was tempted by power, glory and immortality, just as most people are. He makes us realize that there is a little bit of good and bad in everyone, and what makes a person truly good is their ability to overcome the bad.

And this is just what we learn about Harry. Here is a character that started off as a young, timid boy in the first book and grew into a true hero and leader by the end of the seventh. He was also tempted by evil – the Deathly Hallows were a strong temptation for him – but what made him good was that he was eventually able to focus on his original intentions and defeat Voldemort. What I found most interesting about Harry was that throughout the first six books, was that while Harry was courageous, he never did anything all that extraordinary. He either had help from his mother, his friends, or Dumbledore. In Book 7, he was revealed to be a true hero. He accepted his fate willingly and was going to die in order to save his friends. By doing this, he gave them extra protection from Voldemort in the final moments of the battle at Hogwarts. Another true heroic feat was that Harry did not have to use the Avada Kedavra curse on Voldemort to defeat him. He maintained his innocence and offered Voldemort another chance to survive by only using the defensive Expelliarmus spell, which collided with the killing curse that then brought about Voldemort’s own demise. Harry did not actually kill Voldemort, Voldemort did it to himself.

Harry won the Elder wand earlier in this scene by disarming Draco (the true owner of the Elder wand), which gave him what many others, Dumbledore included, sought, the three Deathly Hallows, but Harry realized that what he truly wanted was what he saw in the Mirror of Erised all those years ago, not the power, glory and immortality that the Deathly Hallows bring. While Harry became obsessed with the idea of the Deathly Hallows for a while, he was able to snap out of it in time to realize that his more important mission was finding and destroying the Horcruxes, the only way to defeat Voldemort.

Rowling was able to make love a central and important theme in the books, without it becoming sappy or overbearing. Harry saw a loving family when he looked in the Mirror of Erised in Book 1. What he truly wanted was to love and to be loved. Even the Malfoys showed their good side in this book by stressing the importance of family and love, the only thing that helped keep all of them alive. Harry’s desire for a loving family came true after he realized that the Deathly Hallows would not give him happiness, for that is not what power and immortality bring. Harry’s story mirrored Dumbledore’s, because both had a chance at having all three Deathly Hallows but willingly gave them up for love. Dumbledore lost his own family but still surrounded himself with loving people, those members of the Order of the Phoenix. This is a subtle but valid point. Every member of the Order of the Phoenix had the ability to love and to love strongly – from Lupin to the Longbottoms to the Potters to Snape. Voldemort lacked this ability, as, it seemed, did Bellatrix and that brought about their downfalls.

Overall, the book was well-done. I could nitpick, but the only negative I am going to include is that a lot of information was crammed into a small amount of space. Rowling would have been better off tacking on an extra 100 pages and giving us more detailed explanations. I found this especially true in the King’s Cross chapter with Dumbledore. But she certainly gave us an excellent story, that was both original and clever and that is sure to become a classic.

 

Back Home At Last

It’s 10:15 pm and I am finally back home – after a very long delay and lots of waiting around for luggage and drivers. But that’s okay, because it gave me time to read the book and all I am going to say about it is – WOW!! A bigger and better review to come later when more people have had a chance to read the book.

I’m posting the rest of my pictures up at my Flickr site, and I think that in this case, pictures tell the story best. It was a fantastic and magical night and I loved meeting lots of Harry Potter fans from all over – Spain, Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, California, New York, Chicago and other areas from the globe. We learned new Harry Potter fans songs and joined in for a chorus of the Hogwarts school song (Hoggy Warty Hogwarts). Bands were playing and muggles, witches and wizards – some famous others not as much – magical creatures, reporters, Death Eaters, and giants bonded for one night before being handed the book. I had an amazing time and I am just a little sad that it is now over!

It’s getting late, but I have more to say about my trip and experience so check back. For now have fun at my Flickr site with the pictures.

 

London Day 2: Passionate Harry Potter Fans

Today was a great day. I got up in the morning feeling refreshed from finally sleeping in a real bed for 7 full hours, went for a beautiful run through Holland Park, and then started on my walking tour. In a 1.7 mile walk, I saw the Palace of Westminster, which is also known as the Houses of Parliament and houses Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace where I witnessed the Changing of the Guards, Trafalger Square, the National Gallery, the Life Guards, and the Cabinet War Rooms and Churchill Museum. It was a gorgeous day and I had a fabulous time.

I also got in some fun Harry Potter touristy stuff. I stood in a red telephone box and pretended to dial “MAGIC” to get to the Ministry of Magic – check out the picture at my Flickr site (link is below). After the walking tour, we hopped into the nearest tube to head to King’s Cross Station. I have some great pictures in front of Platform 9 3/4, and on the bridge that Harry and Hagrid stood on in the first movie right before Hagrid disappeared from Harry’s side.

We also saw 10 Downing Street, where the Prime Minister lives, and I imagine one of the rooms in where he held his conversations with Fudge about the Magical World.

The craziest thing we saw was at the Waterstone’s Bookstore in Piccadily Circus, where they are having a huge party on Friday night and I am picking up my books. The line had already started!!!! There were about 40 dressed-up Harry Potter fans, who began their wait today for the party on Friday night. Most of them were from Holland and France and they were having a fantastic time singing Harry Potter songs and promoting their own fan site – dreuzels.com (dreuzels means muggles in Dutch). I started worrying about my own spot in line, but I want to be able to enjoy London before I head to the party, so I spoke with the people in the store and was reassured about getting a spot in line if I get there on Friday afternoon. I’m going to head back tomorrow to see how much the line has grown and talk with more Potter fans!

Don’t forget to check out the Flickr site to see my pictures. Check back tomorrow for more!

 

The Importance of Bellatrix

J.K. Rowling has just given us another clue to Book 7.  In a recent interview with Helena Bonham Carter, she let on that Rowling revealed to her that Bellatrix will be very important in the last book.

Bellatrix Lestrange had been mentioned in a couple of the middle books of the series, but she became important in Order of the Phoenix, when she broke out of Azkaban and participated in the Battle at the Ministry in the Department of Mysteries.  We know that Neville especially has it out for her, since she was one of the Death Eaters who tortured his parents into madness.  Will the two of them be part of the climactic battle in Book 7?

Bellatrix also considers herself one of Voldemort’s most loyal followers and might have had a lot of inside information  into the Death Eaters and Voldemort’s use of horcruxes.  Being a cousin of Sirius and Regulus Black’s, did she know anything about the locket?

And, what I consider to be most important, why did she torture the Longbottoms after Voldemort had already disappear?  What did she believe she had to gain?

 

Neville

Here is a curious character. He has been fairly prominent in all of the books, but his role becomes more important with each book. He has gone from being just a socially-awkward classmate of Harry’s at Hogwarts to a star student in Herbology to a friend who more or less lost his parents to by followers of Voldemort to the other child to whom the Prophecy could have been referring.

Neville will most likely be a key character in Book 7. I think he might even accompany Harry on his quest to find the rest of the Horcruxes, because as we learned in Order of the Phoenix, the fight against Voldemort and his followers means just as much to Neville as it does to Harry.

We still have a lot to learn about the Longbottoms. Why were they tortured? I believe they must have had important information regarding Voldemort, and possibly even knew about the Horcruxes at that time. We also know that they had thrice defied Voldemort, and I am curious as to what it is they did.

Does Neville know how close he was to being the Chosen One? Will he find out and how will that affect him?

 

“Will Voldemort be Defeated?” – Scholastic’s Sixth Question

Scholastic has posted the sixth of their seven questions about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  Will Voldemort be defeated?  Visit the Shrieking Shack to vote with your answer.

I don’t see how the books can end with Voldemort still at large.  I also don’t think that he can be defeated without dying, so my personal opinion is that he will be defeated and die.  Another big question is whether or not Harry Potter will live or die.  If he does happen to die, I believe it will be during a final battle with Voldemort and that it would happen only after Voldemort is defeated.  I am curious to see where this final battle will take place and who will be there to witness the defeat.  Snape and Wormtail are two possibilities and I believe that either one or both will help Harry in the end.  A good place for this final showdown could be Hogwarts – maybe it is where the final horcrux will be found and destroyed?

What do you think?  Can the series end with Voldemort still in power?

 

Dumbledore’s Past

Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was born in the 1840s. He is one of the main characters in the series, but is still shrouded in mystery. He has helped Harry and given us many clues as to what might happen in the books, but has always been careful not to mention anything too personal.

Dumbledore is known as the greatest wizard of his time, his greatest feat being the conquering of Grindelwald, a dark wizard whose reign of terror apparently coincided with World War II. My question is how did Dumbledore become such a great wizard? Is his brother also a great wizard?

It was said in the last book that because Dumbledore had given more to Hogwarts than any other person before him, then he should be buried at the school. He was definitely an excellent headmaster and teacher, but what else did he do for Hogwarts?

He is the only wizard that Voldemort is afraid of, but he himself does has his own flaws. His greatest weakness is thought to be his willingness to trust others that may not be trustworthy (Snape?). He openly admits that everyone makes mistakes from time to time, and that on the rare occasion he does make a mistake, his tend to be bigger than most people because he is more clever. What mistakes has he made in the past?

The only family-member we know about is his brother Aberforth, the owner and bartender of the Hogs Head Inn in Hogsmeade, who I think we will most certainly be seeing more of in Book 7. But are Dumbledore’s ancestors of any importance?

Some of the information we learn about him in the books come from the back of the Chocolate Frog card he is on. His card is mentioned numerous times throughout the series and I wonder if his cards will play more importance in the future.

Overall, Dumbledore is one of the most beloved characters in the series. His kindness, love of sweets, and fascination with the Muggle world, also make it easy to relate to him.

 

Harry Potter Recipes

Would you like to learn how to make some of the food Harry eats while at Hogwarts?  Treacle tart, English trifle, chocolate frogs…  Learn how to make these recipes and more for your next Harry Potter party at the Norwalk Public Library’s Hot and Cold Stuff Recipe Blog.

 

New Hogwarts Staff

If Hogwarts does reopen in The Deathly Hallows, then there are several teaching positions that must be filled.  Of course, there will have to be a new Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher.  Will it be a brand-new character, as all of the teachers in previous books have been or will it be someone we’ve met before?  Is there anyone who is capable at this point?

Professor McGonagall, now Headmaster of Hogwarts, will probably need someone to fill her shoes in the Transfiguration classroom.  Again, will it be a familiar face or someone we’ve never met?

Lastly,  we do not yet know if Professor Slughorn will be teaching Potions again, or if he will also require a replacement.  Would you like to see him at Hogwarts again or would you rather there be someone new to take his place?

 

Harry Potter Parties

We’re having a few Harry Potter events at the library – you can check out the details by clicking on the “Upcoming Events” link at the top. We have lots of games and trivia contests, plus there will be some great Harry Potter food. To find recipes of some of the traditional English foods Harry and his friends eat at Hogwarts, as well as some of the fun wizard treats, visit Hot and Cold Stuff, the Norwalk Public Library’s Recipe Blog. We will be adding new recipes from the books every few days.

Don’t forget about the Wizard Rock Concert with Draco and the Malfoys and The Whomping Willows at the Norwalk Public Library on Thursday, June 28th at 6pm. The following two Thursday evenings, July 5th and 12th, we will be having Harry Potter Games & Discussion nights, also at 6pm. Let us know if you have any ideas for our events!