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I had the good fortune of landing on a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows a few days before its official release.
And to those fans who have been waiting for it, let me tell you this — it is more than worth it. It’s a fantastic piece of work and you will truly relish every single page of it.
The Good
As with all of the Harry Potter books, the Deathly Hallows is a deeply engaging book and you will find that just about everything that’s happened in the books have happened for a reason. For those of us who grew up reading Enid Blyton, consider this as the coming of age for the Famous Five or the Five Find-Outers.
It’s a wonderful piece of fiction that keeps you wanting more, especially towards the very end. I was so distraught when there were no more pages left to read.
And to those of you that have unfortunately come across the spoilers, do not worry. None of the deaths and none of the short snippets really matter. This book is like a journey, and nothing other than reading the whole thing can really spoil it for you.
The Bad
The Harry Potter series has been a really engaging one, but it would seem unlikely (although not totally implausible) that there would be any more books in the series. And this is not necessarily a bad thing, either (and this statement will make more sense after you’ve finished reading the books).
And I must say that while I most certainly liked the ending, I only wish the gang had spent a few more years in school.
The Ugly (i.e. minor spoilers)
Warning: This section of the post may contain spoilers. Do not read ahead unless you want to read them.
It’s interesting to see how pretty much every character has had a part to play, even if it is a small part.
I wish they had a little more on what really happens in the end, after the ending and before the epilogue. While both the ending and the epilogue were fun, a little more fun and celebration at the end after all the darkness would have been wonderful.
Although everything did seem to be happily-ever-after (of sorts), a little more on what the gang is up to would have been great.
Secondly, it is very unfortunate that this is the last book of the series, especially because Rowling introduces some new and fantastic concepts and it would be so awesome to explore some of them further. Deathly Hallows, indeed.
At the end of the day, it’s been a fantastic series. And for all the elitist literary snobs, I predict that years from now, people will be hailing this as a great work of art - and not just for kids.
Take it back
Prasenjeet Said,
July 19, 2007 @ 10:28 pm
Okay, I haven’t read Book 7 yet (21 hours to go!) but here are my Book 7 predictions all the same:
1) Harry isn’t a Horcrux. That’s just silly. Neither is his scar.
2) What are the Deathly Hallows? They’re the Horcruxes — see this link for an explanation of what “hallows” mean.
3) Good Guys who Die: Hagrid. Largely because in Book 6 he said “it’ll take a lot more than [some curses from a Death-Eater] to kill me”. Also Lupin - because that’ll make Tonks really mad and make for excellent drama.
4) Does Harry complete his NEWTs this year? Unlikely.
5) Did Snape double-cross Dumbledore or is it all part of The Plan(tm)? I say he’s Dumbledore’s super-deep-cover agent (and there’s lots of good evidence to indicate he is).
6) Does Voldy bite the bucket? I’m not sure: the bit where the prophecy says “neither can live while the other survives” is worded very strangely. Like Book 5 and 6 noted again and again, the prophecy was not inevitable, it was an act of choice on Voldemort’s part. Harry might well _choose_ to spare him (while using some thingamajic to neutralize his magical powers).
(Weirdly enough, after seeing the movies, I’ve started calling He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named the “Noseless One”.)
7) Does Harry bite the bucket? Nope. I’m willing to bet vast sums on this one.
There you go - 7 books, 7 predictions. I’ll come back and see how I did in 30-odd hours
metlin Said,
July 19, 2007 @ 11:11 pm
You know, I simply cannot resist but reply to a portion of your comments.
#2 - That’s…interesting.
#3 - You’d just have to find out now, wouldn’t you? Although, it is rather interesting to see how Lupin and Harry’s relationship evolves.
#4 - Well, he does mention it at the end of book 6, does he not? Remind me again, though, do you need your NEWTs to be an Auror?
#5 - Ahh. Immaterial of book 7, I have always had a feeling that Dumbledore knew what he was doing.
#6 - Hmmm. This is the most interesting part (of course). The more interesting part is, how much did Dumbledore know?
#7 - That’s also an… interesting speculation, let’s say.
I am not even going to touch the rest of your speculations without giving things away.
The Chaoszone Weblog » The Hallows Approach (and Predictions) Said,
July 19, 2007 @ 11:35 pm
[…] And oh, some wicked Muggles have even put up pre-embargo reviews of Deathly Hallows (no major spoilers in there). I took the opportunity to put down some of my predictions for Book 7 as well. […]
Jass Said,
July 20, 2007 @ 3:57 pm
How did you get the book before its official release?!
p.s: I dont read harry potter though, just curious
metlin Said,
July 20, 2007 @ 9:02 pm
Oh, just had somebody I know lend me their copy. =)
Alamandrax Said,
July 25, 2007 @ 9:35 am
how about i just do this
1. true
2. true
3. false
4. false
5. true
6. false
7. false.
just messing with you guys.
i didn’t even look at the speculations.
but, have to say this… SNAPE KILLED MYRTLE!!!!