SPOILERS-Harry Potter discussion thread

[hissy]

It would be interesting to find out just how long it takes JKR to write these books. My guess is it really didn't take her two years, and he held off for PR reasons as well as what the film producers want her to do.

If must have put a wrench in her works when Richard Harris died, because Dumbledore was such a key figure in the book. But since the movies are so popular she had to kill off the wizard (and I thought wizards really never died).

One thing that bothered me is that Harry made little or no attempt to keep his treasures secret in this book. The invisibility cloak, the marauder's map he used them almost openly and after he told some of the attack that Draco did on him in the train, nothing was done to Draco for hurting the "chosen one." Yet anytime in the other books the students got into a fight there were always consequences to those scuffles.

 

[pinkdaisy226]

But MA... even tho Richard Harris died, they already got a new actor to play him since movie 3 so even tho it was sad that he died (I prefer him to the new actor), I don't think he's the reason that she killed off Dumbledore.

And a lot of you are right... it's about time Harry gets taken seriously. There have been 5 other books where he's been ignored and told he's "too young"... granted, for once Dumbledore didn't brush him off completely... but if D. really DID believe Draco was up to no good, maybe he could've admitted it, instead of ignoring Harry like everyone else does. I'm surprised the kid doesn't have a complex!

 

[bren.1]

I think the teachers and Dumbledore know about the animosity that exists between Draco and Harry. They obviously think Harry is overreacting and reading into things. There really is no solid evidence until the end, when it is too late.

I still think Dumbledore had to die for Harry to be able to come into his own. And I don't think it's the last we'll see of him. I look at it kind of like Obi-Wan dying in Star Wars, "If you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

 

[pinkdaisy226]

Originally Posted by bren.1

I still think Dumbledore had to die for Harry to be able to come into his own. And I don't think it's the last we'll see of him. I look at it kind of like Obi-Wan dying in Star Wars, "If you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

I think you're right. Especially because, when Harry and Dumbledore were on their journey, you could see Dumbledore being very encouraging, maybe trying to build up Harry's self esteem? For example, when they came back and D was weak and that lady (sorry, forgot her name) came up and asked, want me to get the brooms?, Dumbledore said "Harry can do it." And sure enough, Harry got the brooms via magic. It was a lot of those type of things that made me think he was trying to make Harry realize he was more than self-sufficient.

 

[graykittenlove]

I don't know if I like this book yet. I too thought there was a lot of filler in it and strangely a lot of the characters seemed out of character to me. Or at least more extreme in their ways.

Take Snape for instance, yes he has always been a jerk but in this book it came off much rougher, harder?? Even before he killed Dumbledore, he was rougher. I feel the same way about Hermonie and Ron, she's a know-it-all and he's a buffoon always but still it was just blantant in this book compared to the others.

This book just didn't have the same magic(forgive me the term.) as the others did in my opinion. It did feel rather rushed to me, like she would get an idea then try to write it down as fast as possible and never expand on it or something.

And she better tie up all the loose ends in the next book or I'm going to be scratching my head for a long time.

 

[goosehazel]

Originally Posted by Ali012281

Right but you know how Harrys was like something to do with brooms and then some other nerdy thing and then the ginny smell? Hermionie said something about ink and parchment then she stopped and blushed.... I was guessing that it was a ron like smell lol

I don't want to know what Ron smells like

Am I just a hopeless romantic in hoping that Ginny and Harry will get back together?

 

[rosehawke]

Originally Posted by goosehazel

I don't want to know what Ron smells like

Am I just a hopeless romantic in hoping that Ginny and Harry will get back together?

I didn't take that scene to mean that Harry was breaking up with Ginny. He just can't see her right now. He can't see anybody right now because of the fear that Voldemort will try to get to him through them.

Cindy

 

[jcat]

I have to admit that I found most of the book, meaning about 85%, boring. Not much happened until Dumbledore and Harry went off in search of the horcrux. I have to put volume 6 in the same category as volume 4: a "must" read in order to follow the story, but nowhere near as good as the others in the series.

 

[deb25]

Much like George Lucas and Star Wars, I really wonder exactly how much of this JKR really has mapped out and how much she is making up as she goes along, because 'once upon a time' she wrote a book that became a best seller.

There is no way Dumbledore was pleading for his life to Snape. Impossible. I am more thinking along that Obi Wan 'strike me down' line. He had prearranged with Snape to kill him. Maybe there's some other prophecy we don't know about yet.

 

[hissy]

Along the lines of him leaving her to go search for more pieces of Voldemort- had Harry been bewitched by a love potion, he would have never been able to break away

 

[rosehawke]

Apparently she does a lot of character development and a good deal of backstory doesn't find its way into the books. I actually found her "official" site yesterday as I was curious (www.jkrowling.com) and did gain some insight into her writing methods. I was very "into" writing at one time, and I know various authors' techniques vary by a huge amount. Some have the sketchiest idea of what the book will be/do, and others have every chapter outlined I,II,II,A,B,C etc., all the way down to the last dotted i. Seems like hers is of the sketchier sort, and she really lets the story go its own way a bit too much.

IOW, she's spent too much time on backstory, and not enough on story!

Cindy

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by Deb25

There is no way Dumbledore was pleading for his life to Snape. Impossible. I am more thinking along that Obi Wan 'strike me down' line. He had prearranged with Snape to kill him. Maybe there's some other prophecy we don't know about yet.

That's been my point all along when I said it was interesting he asked Harry to get Snape when they came back from getting the locket/horcrux (though as it turns out, it is not one of the horcrux). Dumbledore's two quiet requests - His "please" -was for Severus to do what he was asking him to do, which is to kill him, for whatever reason.

I never thought D was pleading for his life.

 

[wellingtoncats]

Originally Posted by Deb25

I found it to be different, too, Sam. I especially didn't like the whole chapter in the beginning with the Minister of Magic appearing to the British Prime Minister.

Honestly, there was no real focal point in this book, ie, the Sorceror's Stone or the Chamber, so the action in the book had no real climax to go to. I am more and more of the mind that Book 6 is really a big 'part 1' to the next book.

I agree with somebody who said earlier on that I was glad I didn't drag the book out!

I didn't like that chapter either. The first chapter most importantly the first page are crucial to me and if it's boring I have a really hard time getting into it but even if it was a bit boring I HAD to read it.

I think book #2 & #5 are my favourites. I definitly hope the 6th book isn't like this one! and I hope Dumbledore doesn't die forever.

 

[wellingtoncats]

Originally Posted by RoseHawke

IOW, she's spent too much time on backstory, and not enough on story!
Cindy

Absolutely!

 

[goosehazel]

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

That's been my point all along when I said it was interesting he asked Harry to get Snape when they came back from getting the locket/horcrux (though as it turns out, it is not one of the horcrux). Dumbledore's two quiet requests - His "please" -was for Severus to do what he was asking him to do, which is to kill him, for whatever reason.

I never thought D was pleading for his life.

I agree totally. For whatever reason, Dumbledore didn't want Malfoy to have to kill him, so he asked Snape to do it instead. Maybe Dumbledore thought that Malfoy still may be able to be saved from the dark side. I also wonder, in the note that was left with the locket, if the real one was actually destroyed.

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by Deb25

There is no way Dumbledore was pleading for his life to Snape. Impossible. I am more thinking along that Obi Wan 'strike me down' line. He had prearranged with Snape to kill him. Maybe there's some other prophecy we don't know about yet.

That's my interpretation, too. None of the protagonists are without their character flaws. Even Voldemort could be viewed in a sympathetic way: abandoned by his father, orphaned as a baby. The "message" I get from the books is that nothing is entirely "black and white".

 

[wellingtoncats]

Yeah about that locket?

Did Dumbledore know it wasn't the real one? Or is it?

I really want to know more about that.

 

[tyler502]

I havn't finished yet. I bought it the day it came out, and I'm on Chapter Fourteen. I want to enjoy and not rush through it... so it will probably just be a chapter a day for me. So far it's great (but still doesn't beat Goblet of Fire)!

 

[jcat]

I keep coming back to Snape's doing what is "morally" right, despite his antagonism towards Harry.

 

[rosehawke]

Originally Posted by WellingtonCats

Yeah about that locket?

Did Dumbledore know it wasn't the real one? Or is it?

I really want to know more about that.

That's a good point 'cause Harry pretty much knew immediately that it wasn't the real one, and he hadn't seen it except for the once or twice in the pensieve. Presumably Dumbledore had been studying the memories he'd gathered and would have watched those innumerable times.

Arrgghhh, I've got some pretty good thunder going, I think I'm fixing to have to get off before I get kicked off! And OMG, Sunny's riding his bike today ... I'm going to have to meet him in the garage with a bunch of towels

!

Cindy