HP6
Good book, if short. 26 hours. Can't talk, gotta re-read.
Update:
Okay. I've had some time to think and mull it over. My review/thoughts/comments are in the comments section.
Warning: Blinding, book-ruining spoilers in there! Do not click into the comments section if you have not finished the book.
posted by Scott @ 8:50 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
So, what did I think? In brief, it's very good, but it's probably my least favorite of the Harry Potter books. Of course, this still puts it above everything else out there. I mean, we're talking about Rowling. What's going to compete, Eragon? Bah.
It is obvously a bridge book, a second act of sorts. So while it's not The Two Towers or The Empire Strikes Back, neither is it Matrix Reloaded.
In my opinion, this book is most like the first half of The Fellowship of The Ring: lots of exposition, enough action to keep you reading. Or maybe like the second half of The Two Towers: you know we've got to get from here to there, and this does the job while still making the journey worthwhile.
Still, we're still talking about Tolkien and Rowling, who, even when they are "bad," are still better than anyone else. Just as with LOTR, I can only thank God that my children are far enough apart that I'll have to read these as bedtime stories at least 3 separate times.
Probably my favorite thing about this book was her definition and use of love. Harry's world is identical to reality in that love consists of giving up something of yourself in order to place another person's priorities above your own. So love is sacrificial. The greatest concentration of this comes at the end of the book, with the Bill/Fleur and Lulpin/Tonks declarations, but we see it throughout all of the books.
The defining characteristic of all of the Good characters is that they love and sacrifice in this way, despite any other faults they may have. In contrast, all of the Bad characters place themselves and their desires above anything else. Even the people who "serve" Voldemort do so for selfish reasons: to further their own power, to validate a worldview that places them on top (Malfoys), or because they have nowhere else to go (Pettigrew).
Very Reformed, this world of Harry's.
This is most evident in the characters who switch sides: Peter Pettigrew, Percy Weasley, and the earlier Snape.
Probably my biggest disappointment with this book comes because it is so unfinished. It seems to be the first half of one really huge book. Note that the books have been getting longer and longer, and then all of a sudden this one drops in size by 1/3rd. Coincidence? I think not!
Unlike any of the previous books, there are many, many ends left untied. Why did Snape kill Dumbledore? Who is R.A.B.? What will happen to Harry and Ginny? What's up with Percy?
I hate loose ends, especially if I've got to wait 3-5 years for resolution. And this book closes on a pile of loose ends.
Here are my predictions for the unresolved issues from book 6:
- Snape will redeem himself. It will be found out either that he was under Dumbledore's orders to kill him (e.g., if it could provide an opportunity to get closer to Voldemort, a la Hero) or that Snape will repent in the end and become unselfish. Either way, he will provide the necessary power in the end that is needed to finish the Dark Lord off.
- Draco Malfoy will also redeem himself and join the Good side, but will remain a jerk.
- R.A.B. will be a new character who will essentially (but not completely) take the place of Dumbledore. But he/she will be much less helpful and stable than Dumbledore, because Harry is older and doesn't need as much help and stability.
- Harry and Ginny will get back together, simply because I want it to be so.
- Percy will either die, be reunited with his family, or both.
Please note, I can be wrong. While reading this book, I thought that Dumbledore was, at various times, either the Half-Blood Prince, an Inferi under the control of Voldemort, or Voldemort himself using a Polyjuice potion.
However, I also correctly predicted several books ago that Dumbledore would die before the end and that Harry and Ginny would get together.
Not that I'm so astute, but I can be right sometimes, too.
Whew. Anybody got a release date on #7?
Thank you for the plot. I have chosen (for various reasons too lengthy to discuss here) not to continue reading the Potter Series. But I had to know what happened. I definitely think Harry and Ginny will be together at the end. I'm not surprised that Dumbledore dies, I've kind of been waiting for it.
If you are looking for another good YA read, The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix is my best pick. or anything by Diana Wynn Jones if you are looking for magical mayhem. (The Dark Lord of Dernholm is one of my favs)
Happy reading
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