"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."
What can I say? It's wonderful!
I picked my copy at my local bookstore, Three Sisters Books, at 12:01 a.m. Sat. July 21, having left my son and his friends camping in our palatial, three-bedroom Jeep tent in our back yard. It was his 11th birthday.
Several friends had been at the pre-book release party, which started at 11 p.m.
I was No. 44 and 45, since I was picking up my neighbor's copy, too. So I was one of the last one there to get my copy.
I delivered Susan's copy to her. Her husband and son were camping with the Boy Scouts, and her young daughters were fast asleep. She took a long nap, and told me she was going to read for a while when I took her her book.
I went home and finally was able to settle down to start reading at 12:45 a.m.
No. 7 was mesmerizing. I couldn't put it down.
Suffice it to say I read the bulk of it and finished it Saturday night.
Awesome!
Although I felt I had to slog along in some middle parts, each chapter was integral to the story. None could have been left out.
Right now I am re-reading the story slowly so I can absorb the details. Several images stood out for me, which I will share with you later.
Dig right into it if you can. Even if you haven't read the previous books in the series, you can still enjoy DH on its own. One of my friends, who drives to Indy daily, bought the audio version. This is a good option, too. The reader is English, and he does different voices for many of the main characters.
I apologize to my sister-in-law for not having posted my 4th of July stories, including the tale of the flying market umbrella. That will come soon.
But until then, enjoy "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," and let me know what you think.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
A Tale of Two Snapes
"The Great Snape Debate" is engaging, entertaining and worth a quick read before midnight Friday.
Written by Amy Berner, Orson Scott Card and Joyce Millman, it is a Borders Book Store exclusive publication. You'll have to find it there. Since it only takes 2 or 3 hours to read, you could just take it to the cafe and read it in the store.
I've already passed on my copy to a friend, to help her while away the hours before we pick up our "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" at midnight Friday in Shelbyville's Three Sisters Books & Gifts, so I apologize for not having specific quotes and instances to illustrate my review.
I really enjoyed the "Two Sides to Every Story, Flip the Book Over and See" idea. On one side is "Snape as Foe," illustrated with the green Slytherin snake arising from the cauldron on the cover. Flip the book over and you'll find "Snape as Friend," with a red phoenix shimmering over that cauldron.
Inside, you'll find the major points of the Severus Snape story throughout all six books of the Harry Potter series thus far. Each side goes through these points from the perspective of Snape as friend or foe. This gets a little repetitive, and it is done elsewhere, on websites and books, better.
However, the authors then take us through major literary themes that reflect friends or foes and how Snape resembles these archetypes of comparative literature. These sections I found interesting and engaging, though, again, in a few sections, somewhat repetitive once I got to the second "side." Here is expounded the idea of Snape as Shape Shifter, a character is makes a major shift from neutral to good/bad or from bad to good. These areas were illuminating and worthwhile. It is easy to see how Snape fits into the Shape Shifter mold.
Here, the friend and foe sections both begin with Milton's "Paradise Lost" and Satan, as the model for Snape. It is easy for me to see Snape echoing the Satan archetype, as well as an ultimate Shape Shifter, from bad to good.
The section I thought was best was the chapter written by prolific science fiction author Orson Scott Card. Here he looked at the issue as an author, explained how he would handle Snape (shape shifting from bad to good) and as an ultimate sacrifice. I was shocked at this, but after reading his reasoning, I could see how an author might come to that plot twist.
Now, I look forward to see how J.K. Rowling pulls together the separate threads of Snape's story not just on an emotional reader level but also on a comparative fiction basis. Rowling has shown a mastery of weaving myth, legend, whimsy and religion in her Potter series. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" will be a masterful, epic Final Act.
Mugglenet's "What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7?"
While I was browsing in Borders, after securing my copy of "The Great Snape Debate," I came across a book written by the creator, and contributors, of mugglenet.com, which has been hailed by Rowling as the best fan site she has visited. I have enjoyed visiting mugglenet.com, so I picked up "What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7?"
Included in this book were sections on the major plot "secrets" so far that still have to be resolved, a synopsis of the series through Book 6, and a short section explaining how Mugglenet.com and the book came to be.
Mugglenet's synopsis of the series is better than the one given in "The Great Snape Debate" because it is written by Emerson Sparks, the home-schooled teenage with too much time on his hands who created mugglenet. The website is encyclopedic and includes one section where fans may write in with discrepancies or mistakes they have found in the books.
Themes that have been ongoing for years now on the website were pulled together for the book. "What Will Happen" covered the Snape-as-friend-or-foe theme more succinctly. Then it went on to the second-most-talked-about puzzler, Is Dumbledore Really Dead? It covered What Will Happen to Neville Longbottom, the Boy Who Almost Was Harry, and his future, inextricably twined with Death Eater and torturer of his parents, Bellatrix Lestrange.
In comparison, I probably enjoyed "What Will Happen" more on an entertainment level. It WAS fun and entertaining and covered more than just one topic. I was a little bored with "The Great Snape Debate" even though it was thought-provoking in a way many books on popular topics aren't'.
Written by Amy Berner, Orson Scott Card and Joyce Millman, it is a Borders Book Store exclusive publication. You'll have to find it there. Since it only takes 2 or 3 hours to read, you could just take it to the cafe and read it in the store.
I've already passed on my copy to a friend, to help her while away the hours before we pick up our "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" at midnight Friday in Shelbyville's Three Sisters Books & Gifts, so I apologize for not having specific quotes and instances to illustrate my review.
I really enjoyed the "Two Sides to Every Story, Flip the Book Over and See" idea. On one side is "Snape as Foe," illustrated with the green Slytherin snake arising from the cauldron on the cover. Flip the book over and you'll find "Snape as Friend," with a red phoenix shimmering over that cauldron.
Inside, you'll find the major points of the Severus Snape story throughout all six books of the Harry Potter series thus far. Each side goes through these points from the perspective of Snape as friend or foe. This gets a little repetitive, and it is done elsewhere, on websites and books, better.
However, the authors then take us through major literary themes that reflect friends or foes and how Snape resembles these archetypes of comparative literature. These sections I found interesting and engaging, though, again, in a few sections, somewhat repetitive once I got to the second "side." Here is expounded the idea of Snape as Shape Shifter, a character is makes a major shift from neutral to good/bad or from bad to good. These areas were illuminating and worthwhile. It is easy to see how Snape fits into the Shape Shifter mold.
Here, the friend and foe sections both begin with Milton's "Paradise Lost" and Satan, as the model for Snape. It is easy for me to see Snape echoing the Satan archetype, as well as an ultimate Shape Shifter, from bad to good.
The section I thought was best was the chapter written by prolific science fiction author Orson Scott Card. Here he looked at the issue as an author, explained how he would handle Snape (shape shifting from bad to good) and as an ultimate sacrifice. I was shocked at this, but after reading his reasoning, I could see how an author might come to that plot twist.
Now, I look forward to see how J.K. Rowling pulls together the separate threads of Snape's story not just on an emotional reader level but also on a comparative fiction basis. Rowling has shown a mastery of weaving myth, legend, whimsy and religion in her Potter series. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" will be a masterful, epic Final Act.
Mugglenet's "What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7?"
While I was browsing in Borders, after securing my copy of "The Great Snape Debate," I came across a book written by the creator, and contributors, of mugglenet.com, which has been hailed by Rowling as the best fan site she has visited. I have enjoyed visiting mugglenet.com, so I picked up "What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7?"
Included in this book were sections on the major plot "secrets" so far that still have to be resolved, a synopsis of the series through Book 6, and a short section explaining how Mugglenet.com and the book came to be.
Mugglenet's synopsis of the series is better than the one given in "The Great Snape Debate" because it is written by Emerson Sparks, the home-schooled teenage with too much time on his hands who created mugglenet. The website is encyclopedic and includes one section where fans may write in with discrepancies or mistakes they have found in the books.
Themes that have been ongoing for years now on the website were pulled together for the book. "What Will Happen" covered the Snape-as-friend-or-foe theme more succinctly. Then it went on to the second-most-talked-about puzzler, Is Dumbledore Really Dead? It covered What Will Happen to Neville Longbottom, the Boy Who Almost Was Harry, and his future, inextricably twined with Death Eater and torturer of his parents, Bellatrix Lestrange.
In comparison, I probably enjoyed "What Will Happen" more on an entertainment level. It WAS fun and entertaining and covered more than just one topic. I was a little bored with "The Great Snape Debate" even though it was thought-provoking in a way many books on popular topics aren't'.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
It's All About Harry
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" swept into theaters at 12:01 a.m. Wed., July 11, with a compelling portrait of Harry as a burdened, lonely teenager and struggling to face his future.
I was pleased with the movie of the 5th book of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter tale. It was smoother and less disjointed than "Goblet of Fire," and it hit most of the major points of the book.
I was disappointed in the character of Dolores Umbridge. These actresses are just too pretty to portray the unflattering characters from the books. Imelda Staunton was creepy, but her giggle, essential to her character, didn't convey that she was truly enjoying herself, as the book Umbridge did. Dressing her in nearly Muggle clothes didn't help, but you could certainly spot her in her hot pink wardrobe. The shot of Umbridge on a golden thronelike chair in front of an entire hall full of students writing lines in their own blood was great. There Staunton truly looked as if she was enjoying herself, just as the book Umbridge would have.
This film Umbridge wasn't loathsome enough to have us rooting for her defeat, as the truly evil Umbridge Rowling crafted in the book.
Another beautiful actress, Evanna Lynch, was too pretty to portray Luna Lovegood, who should have looked a little weirder. However, the first-time actress was terrifically spacey, with an odd, breathy voice and far-away look in her eyes. I loved the way she skipped off. Watching her, I was able to believe that the focus she learned in Harry's Defense Against the Dark Arts club will help her become the extraordinarily talented witch that her mother once was.
Seeing her interaction with Matt Evans, (Neville Longbottom) adds fuel to the speculation that a closer relationship may develop between them, as evidenced in the Department of Mysteries.
The roles of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley were substantially reduced for this movie, as was Ginny Weasley's. Ron and Hermione's movie relationship was not marked by by the squabbling from the book. They were supportive, if somewhat silent, for Harry. But their portrayal of friendship shone.
The movie was all about Harry, his anger and angst, loneliness and love. Many scenes in the movie portrayed Harry physically alone, and Umbridge's treatment and students' reactions to him showed how alone emotionally he was. Luna, herself alone like Harry, offered a piercing observation: If Harry is alone, he is easier to defeat by Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
Daniel Radcliffe shows great range in his emotions on screen, from falling in love with Cho Chang, befriending Loony Lovegood, standing up to Dolores Umbridge, leading his friends into battle, fighting the Death Eaters to staving off Voldemort's assault of his mind and body.
One of my favorite scenes was of Harry dueling Death Eaters by his godfather, Sirius Black's, side. The flashing of the wands, the look of delight on Sirius's face and determination on Harry's, the poignancy of Sirius calling "Nice one, James," when Harry's curse struck home. When Sirius fell through the curtain, dying, and Remus Lupin grabbed Harry in a bear hug to support his agony, I shed a few tears. Since I expected this, I didn't bawl as I had when reading OOTP.
I was impressed with the scene of Dumbledore battling Voldemort and Voldemort possessing Harry. The flashing images of Harry and his friends, parents and Sirius conveyed the love that he has, the "power that the Dark Lord knows not." I was struck once again with the imagery of Satan and Jesus here, of the temptations, especially to kill Bellatrix Lestrange, and the contempt of Voldemort calling Harry weak. As I had just finished the Rebirthing scene in GOF earlier Wednesday afternoon, when Voldemort recalls Harry's mother, dying for her only son, I saw the continuation of this Hero-Evil mythology in Rowling's series.
Several story lines had to be compressed to fit into the movie, spending time at the OOTP headquarters, Harry's romance with Cho and Harry's Occulmency lessons with Snape. Not having more with Cho made it hard to see the connection with the betrayal of Dumbledore's Army, even with the added element of Umbridge's "Inquisitions." But the condensation of Occulmency lessons with Snape was effective, and the urgency of this training was heightened by beginning immediately after Harry's vision of attacking Arthur Weasley, which the book didn't portray as drastically. Snape is creepy, played deliciously by Alan Rickman, although his detestation of Harry wasn't as evident in this movie as in the OOTP book.
At the end, we see Dumbledore again appearing in Harry's dorm room. By telling Harry that he withheld information because he so desperately wanted to protect Harry, helped us see what Rowling described in the book as "an old man's mistake." Perhaps in withholding information from each other with those in our own lives, we too are doing a disservice to them, however kindly meant.
I will probably take my 7-year-old daughter to see this movie. I believe OOTP is not as overtly scary as GOF was. I have already told her that she will see Voldemort much more in this movie, and she assures me she will just cover her eyes. For all the peril that Harry is in, this movie shows little blood and guts. Creepiness, tension and a sense of fighting what may be a losing battle abound, but for a child would matter little, and she could definitely enjoy loathing Professor Umbridge.
OOTP is a transitional book, a growing-up and seeing what the world can really be like. It pulls the veil off Harry's eyes and ours as he finds out the horrible path he must follow. Living his life vicariously makes ours seem much easier.
I was pleased with the movie of the 5th book of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter tale. It was smoother and less disjointed than "Goblet of Fire," and it hit most of the major points of the book.
I was disappointed in the character of Dolores Umbridge. These actresses are just too pretty to portray the unflattering characters from the books. Imelda Staunton was creepy, but her giggle, essential to her character, didn't convey that she was truly enjoying herself, as the book Umbridge did. Dressing her in nearly Muggle clothes didn't help, but you could certainly spot her in her hot pink wardrobe. The shot of Umbridge on a golden thronelike chair in front of an entire hall full of students writing lines in their own blood was great. There Staunton truly looked as if she was enjoying herself, just as the book Umbridge would have.
This film Umbridge wasn't loathsome enough to have us rooting for her defeat, as the truly evil Umbridge Rowling crafted in the book.
Another beautiful actress, Evanna Lynch, was too pretty to portray Luna Lovegood, who should have looked a little weirder. However, the first-time actress was terrifically spacey, with an odd, breathy voice and far-away look in her eyes. I loved the way she skipped off. Watching her, I was able to believe that the focus she learned in Harry's Defense Against the Dark Arts club will help her become the extraordinarily talented witch that her mother once was.
Seeing her interaction with Matt Evans, (Neville Longbottom) adds fuel to the speculation that a closer relationship may develop between them, as evidenced in the Department of Mysteries.
The roles of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley were substantially reduced for this movie, as was Ginny Weasley's. Ron and Hermione's movie relationship was not marked by by the squabbling from the book. They were supportive, if somewhat silent, for Harry. But their portrayal of friendship shone.
The movie was all about Harry, his anger and angst, loneliness and love. Many scenes in the movie portrayed Harry physically alone, and Umbridge's treatment and students' reactions to him showed how alone emotionally he was. Luna, herself alone like Harry, offered a piercing observation: If Harry is alone, he is easier to defeat by Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
Daniel Radcliffe shows great range in his emotions on screen, from falling in love with Cho Chang, befriending Loony Lovegood, standing up to Dolores Umbridge, leading his friends into battle, fighting the Death Eaters to staving off Voldemort's assault of his mind and body.
One of my favorite scenes was of Harry dueling Death Eaters by his godfather, Sirius Black's, side. The flashing of the wands, the look of delight on Sirius's face and determination on Harry's, the poignancy of Sirius calling "Nice one, James," when Harry's curse struck home. When Sirius fell through the curtain, dying, and Remus Lupin grabbed Harry in a bear hug to support his agony, I shed a few tears. Since I expected this, I didn't bawl as I had when reading OOTP.
I was impressed with the scene of Dumbledore battling Voldemort and Voldemort possessing Harry. The flashing images of Harry and his friends, parents and Sirius conveyed the love that he has, the "power that the Dark Lord knows not." I was struck once again with the imagery of Satan and Jesus here, of the temptations, especially to kill Bellatrix Lestrange, and the contempt of Voldemort calling Harry weak. As I had just finished the Rebirthing scene in GOF earlier Wednesday afternoon, when Voldemort recalls Harry's mother, dying for her only son, I saw the continuation of this Hero-Evil mythology in Rowling's series.
Several story lines had to be compressed to fit into the movie, spending time at the OOTP headquarters, Harry's romance with Cho and Harry's Occulmency lessons with Snape. Not having more with Cho made it hard to see the connection with the betrayal of Dumbledore's Army, even with the added element of Umbridge's "Inquisitions." But the condensation of Occulmency lessons with Snape was effective, and the urgency of this training was heightened by beginning immediately after Harry's vision of attacking Arthur Weasley, which the book didn't portray as drastically. Snape is creepy, played deliciously by Alan Rickman, although his detestation of Harry wasn't as evident in this movie as in the OOTP book.
At the end, we see Dumbledore again appearing in Harry's dorm room. By telling Harry that he withheld information because he so desperately wanted to protect Harry, helped us see what Rowling described in the book as "an old man's mistake." Perhaps in withholding information from each other with those in our own lives, we too are doing a disservice to them, however kindly meant.
I will probably take my 7-year-old daughter to see this movie. I believe OOTP is not as overtly scary as GOF was. I have already told her that she will see Voldemort much more in this movie, and she assures me she will just cover her eyes. For all the peril that Harry is in, this movie shows little blood and guts. Creepiness, tension and a sense of fighting what may be a losing battle abound, but for a child would matter little, and she could definitely enjoy loathing Professor Umbridge.
OOTP is a transitional book, a growing-up and seeing what the world can really be like. It pulls the veil off Harry's eyes and ours as he finds out the horrible path he must follow. Living his life vicariously makes ours seem much easier.
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