Since I’m sure there are people who haven’t read, or finished reading, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, I’m putting my thoughts about it in the extended entry. If you want to read more, click the link below. Please be warned that it does contain some spoilers!
…and now back to your regularly scheduled knitting… :)
First of all, let me just say, this was a very well-written story. That being said, it wasn’t exactly what I had expected. It had a much darker tone than the others. Although, the characters are getting older, the intended reading audience is getting older… It was full of teenage angst and – at least I thought – contained more realistic emotions than the first four books, some of which were uncomfortable to read.
It was actually hard to read at some points. Everything seemed to be going horribly wrong, and you just wanted to be able to fix it. Every time Harry overreacted to well-intentioned friends, or something else went wrong with the school, it just felt like everything was out of control.
I have to admit, Padfoot’s death took me by surprise, and happened so quickly that I had a hard time reacting to it – the sadness I felt was more based on what Harry was feeling. Although, now that I’ve finished and mulled it over for a while, I am very sad that she chose that particular character to kill off!
This book is very different from the previous ones because it doesn’t really have a happy, hopeful ending. Harry learns the truth behind Voldemort’s attempt to kill him (no, nothing as dramatic as Voldemort being Harry’s real father!) and a few pages later is packed off on the train back home. The one loose end I thought was glaring was the fact that Voldemort was able to get into Harry’s mind, but after the big battle scene, not much more was said on the subject. Maybe that will be dicussed in the beginning of the next book.
I am very interested to see how the story line continues. Despite the fact that apparently more was revealed in this book than originally planned, there are still many unanswered questions…which makes sense, as there are two more books to go!
Holy Moley Sarah… you finished it already?! I mean, I know it’s not a hard read, but have you eaten in the past three days?
I am trying to stretch it out… make it last as long as possible. It’s gonna be a long time til book six!
I’m glad you didn’t “spoil” the HP experience, but as soon as I get my grubby paws on a book, and finish reading it, I will definitely return to read your insights!
Jenny – Not only did I manage to eat in the past three days, I even played two masses, went to a parish picnic (with a dish to pass!) and tossed the dogs in the pool for a while. I’m a fast reader. Plus I put knitting on hold for that whole time. ;)