August 11, 2013
As I've written in a previous post, I have not picked up a Harry Potter book in 10 years, because I was so upset about the death of Sirius Black. Okay, and there were other factors involved. The text that I just finished with released the summer before my senior year. I had a lot more on my mind during that time than what was going on at Hogwarts. It was easy (too easy) for me to put the series aside, and to scoff at my classmates who were so worked up over Dumbledore's death (plus, I've seen the movie, with my parents, so I already knew it was coming). So I was pleasantly surprised to find that I'm still as impressed with Rowling's superb writing as I was when I was so into the series. I have been, dare I say, enchanted once again.
I'd even venture so far as to say that this one is the best of the series (of course, I still have not read the final one). This book really tied together a lot of loose ends, so to speak, really drew together the plot from previous books. See, I used to feel this sort of disconnect between the adventures in the earlier books. Like, Voldemort didn't seem like a serious threat until, maybe, the end of the third book, when Pettigrew escaped and was determined to find his "master" again. Up to that point, though Harry's adventures had involved Voldemort in some way or another, it just hadn't all come together yet. This book made those connections, even while presenting some new questions (though it seems clear how they will all come into play in the final book). I wonder if Rowling had this all planned out in advance, or if she spent a lot of time rereading and reflecting on her previous work, really considering how to tidy it all up...
Regardless, this was a satisfying read for me, and I know I'll be waiting much less than 10 years to read the last one. I mean, even if it hadn't already been out for a few years already, I'd be able to guess at the ending: Harry kills Voldemort. Since the stories and movies (I haven't seen either part of the seventh film) have been such a prevalent part of popular culture, I know a little bit more than that. But again, even going into this book with so many "spoilers," it did not take anything away from my enjoyment.
Here is just a rundown of the legitimately unanswered questions that I have at this point:
-Who is R.A.B.? Along with that, what happened to Slythrin's locket, for real?
-Will Harry and his friends ever return to Hogwarts? Will Hogwarts even open back up for their seventh and final year?
-Snape is obviously on the right side, but he got caught up in a tangled situation...Dumbledore knew that Snape had to kill him, insisted that he do it, and played at his pleading very well. But what, exactly, is Snape's role in this whole thing? I know that he will ultimately redeem himself...how will he do it?
-Poor Malfoy. What is going to happen to poor Malfoy in the seventh book? I've heard enough to know that he turns to the right side as well, eventually. Just goes to show that even a dick can be a good person. Rowling shows it in this book with Fleur's reaction to her fiance Bill's maiming, how she insists that she will stand by him and marry him regardless. She's a haughty brat, but obviously true of heart.
-Is Harry a Horcrux? In other words, does he himself contain a bit of Voldemort's soul? Some "spoilers" I'd previously heard may indicate this...
I don't know why I waited so long to read this book. I guess that at the time that it came out, and the following year, I'd grown disgusted with anything that draws hype. For instance, the Twilight series and Fifty Shades of Grey...these, along with Harry Potter or, say, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, have been literary sensations quite recently, all in their own right. But I feel a strong aversion to the Twilight series, which in turn puts me off from Fifty Shades..., as its origins can be traced back to the mega-popular vampire-romance series. I've read bits and pieces of each, samples on the Internet or whatever, and always find the writing to be hackneyed, the dialogue to be laughably disingenuous. Maybe these bits were selected for those properties, I don't know. But enough people out there, people who seem to have much better grammar and speaking (or writing, if online) skills than those who are drawn to these series, and it just seems so...shallow.
Some might say, so what? "You don't read Fifty Shades for the plot," I've heard/read many times. Fair enough. But I don't know...I feel like if I'm taking the time to read something, it ought to have some substance. In other words, I do not allow myself to indulge in "guilty" reads. I wouldn't consider Rowling, or, say, Stephen King to be "guilty reads," because the quality of writing is so good. There's writing stories (that may be fun, though they contain stereotypical, one-dimensional characters), and then there's creating literature, inventing these vivid worlds and realistic, complicated characters. Harry Potter is among the best written works to come out this (young) century. You care about the characters. The subtle humor makes you laugh out loud, and the death of characters makes you cry (yes, some tears fell for Dumbledore). I think it's tragic that any school, library, or community would consider banning the series, but I guess it's happened many times. What a shame, when its overall themes and messages are so positive, and the characters are timeless.
Rowling has come out with two books in the last couple of years, not at all written in the vein of Harry Potter. Some would say, she's achieved as much as any contemporary writer can, she's rich as shit, so why not retire and enjoy herself? Well, I can answer that, without having ever made more than $5 from anything I've written: because she's a writer. She's an artist...she's not like big-name authors of our time (James Patterson comes to mind here) who come out with so many books (basically, slapping their name on products). She took her time with her first series, and while that was agonizing for me as a kid, I can appreciate the care that she took in her work, how much pride she must have in it now. Because from my perspective, it's flawless.
That being said, some might also say that she could never dream of recreating the success of her first series. I'd agree with them there, but that doesn't mean she shouldn't write and publish, because she's a damn talented author. So before I read the last Harry Potter book, I think I should read one of Rowling's new, adult fiction texts. Let's see if the magic carries over into other genres...I have quite a lot of faith that reading anything by J.K. Rowling (or any pseudonym under which she may publish) would never be a waste of time.
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*Spoiler alert*
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