Muggle Alert: Who's Ready For "HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX"? (1 Viewer)

[Jason Sherman]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned one of the best sequences in the book. Fred and George's escape was fantastic.

I think that Harry is going to be in some serious training int he next two books for his inevitable fight with Voldemort. I'd love to see Harry become a badass with a wand and kick Malfoy's ass up and down the halls of Hogwarts.

 

[Mark Hedges]

Kind of off topic but I had a question -

Does anybody know why the 1st book is called sorcerers stone in the US? Everywhere else it seemes to be called philosophers stone.



Now onto Order of the Pheonix -

I had a feeling that Sirius would be the one to die. Firstly because he is one of the least important characters that could maybe be called a major character. And also, as has previously been mentioned, to increase Harry's hatred of Voldemort.

I noticed that the characters seemed affected by the movies, but I wonder if that is just a result of the movies altering my perception of the characters, rather than any changes by Rowling. I certainly read every line of Dumbledore's as if it was spoken by Richard Harris.

 

[BrianB]

Does anybody know why the 1st book is called sorcerers stone in the US? Everywhere else it seemes to be called philosophers stone.

Simple reason: the US publisher didn't think the US audience would comprehend the original title as this context of Philosospher is less common in the US.

 

[Yee-Ming]

 

[Tony Stirling]

Yee-Ming, Re: Hermione and why she's not in Ravenclaw -- it was up to the sorting hat, I guess...
take a look at Chapter 19!! enjoy!

tony

 

[JonZ]

"So far I don't remember any other students being portrayed as being smarter and better at their studies than Hermione...."

Not only that,but she also seemed to be a more advanced Wizard/Witch as well.Shes quick to think on her feet and often helping others out of situations.

Harry of course has excelled when he needed to, but Hermoine has been the most constistantly proficient Wizard in the series IMHO

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

 

[Chuck Mayer]

Just finished, and a bit underwhelmed. It was a strong book, and better than most, but based on Goblet

I expected Book 5 to be much more involved in setting up the coming conflict, but yet, we hopped right into (more or less) the traditional HP story. I guess Book SIX is where we will get going then. I want them at school, but I want the overarching story to make a play. Perhaps it has to do with my response to Book 4. I felt that "it changed everything" only to find out it didn't.

Lest you think I am all complaints, the book had it's charm, and I did love the furthering of the characters personalities and broadening of the world (started in Goblet). Hagrid was missed, and his presence was less reassuring than usual. His subplot was rather silly, and used simply as a plot device. I loved the chapter "Snape's Worst Memory", but Rowling did not utilize it fully here. I also felt Harry's hatred of Snape at the end was projection. Harry seems smarter than that, and Harry is more to blame for Sirius than Snape. Clearly, Snape saved the day.

On to Sirius, what to say. It was too quick and slick, but it worked later on to convey emotion. I do give full marks, and then some, to JKR for capturing a fifteen year old boy. Some of my criticisms are levelled by a 28 year old person wishing kids were smarter. But they aren't always, and she understands that.


As for the future, things to chew on:
JKR has been setting up the final conflict quite well. I expected Neville to become far more important the minute I learned about his parents. I expect he will be a major player.

We all know Ron and Hermione will end up together. I also know that Harry and Draco will never fully tangle. The antagonism between Draco and Weasley has been brewing, and Ron will be pushed to the limit by Draco in the coming years. I believe it will have to do with Hermione, given Draco's hatred of her.

Hagrid or Dumbledore, someone else is kicking the can. JKR is slowly peeling away support for Harry, until all that is left for him will be himself. DD won't be involved at the end. Hagrid should make it.

If there is more romance for Harry, it's Ginny. I've been saying that since Chamber.


It's a good read, and I look forward to giving it a second whirl!

Prisoner is still my favorite But it's good to have Harry back.

Take care,
Chuck

 

[Kenneth]

Saw this collection of political cartoons concerning Harry Potter on MSN:

http://cagle.slate.msn.com/news/HarryPotter4/main.asp

Some are funnier than others and some may be political in nature (since they are done by political cartoonists ). Enjoy.

Kenneth

 

[Peter Kline]

Here's an interesting article by Frank Rich in the New York Times.

 

[Tino]

For those of you who have finished it, how about a simple spoiler free rating on a scale of 1 to 10?

Thanks.

 

[RafaelB]

After finally finishing it this past Sunday, I think I'd rate it a 7.5- above average compared to the other books.

My list of preference:
1- Prisoner of Azkaban
2- Goblet of Fire
3- Order of the Phoenix
4- Sorcerer's Stone
5- Chamber of Secrets

Order of the Phoenix is one I'm definitely looking forward to re-reading again though.

Rafael

 

[Michael Fennessy]

Order of the phoenix = 8.0. Possible higher on re-read.

My Order.

1. Prisoner
2. (tie)Order/Goblet
4. Sorcerer's
5. Chamber

 

[Chuck Mayer]

I have only read each book once (but I plan to 1-5 soon), so I don't feel comfortable rating it.

It was my least favorite, but I imagine it'll fare a lot better on Round 2.

No rating :frowning: but a very readable (and rather decent) book!

Sorry,
Chuck

 

[Jim_C]

I agree with Michael's order of the books. I've read the first four 3 times now and I always come out to that ranking (now including Order).

 

[Joe Wong]

Some of my thoughts having just finished it:

* PoA still my favourite

* OotP is too long, though not as bloated as Goblet of Fire (which I thought could have been shortened by 200-300 pages)

* chapters such as Ministry of Magic and Grawp meandered, though one can see their relevance later on

* excellent action finish

* good to see Ginny becoming a stronger character

* still loved the humour, such as Bill Weasley(?)'s line that Dumbledore would be ok with his dismissal as long as he remains on the trading cards and Lee Jordan's first Quidditch commentary

* Rowling's writing flows beautifully, though editing could have tightened some sections, IMHO

* Would have liked to have seen more Order of the Phoenix doings, since that is the title

 

[Moe Maishlish]

I just finished this book last night, and I loved it. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd rate it an 8.5.

It was long, and yes there were a couple of chapters/side-plots that I could have done without, but I don't think that we can really judge this book until we've finished reading the entire series. The funny this is that these books might change their significance when we look at the entire story as a whole, so the Grawp chapter, while somewhat meandering in my opinion, might become very very significant with books 6 & 7.

One question I have is this:

What was the significance of the Veil that Sirius passes through? Is it a doorway to the afterlife? Was Sirius killed by Bellatrix Lestrange, or did he die when he slid through the veil and into the afterlife? I think we need to consider the significance of this "mysterious" veil, as it might play a very serious role later in the series, potentially leading to some return or reincarnation of Sirius.... or maybe not.


This book kept me enthralled until the early hours of the morning, and is partially to blame for me getting to work late on a few occasions! JKR will have to explain that to my manager, should it ever become an issue.

Moe.

 

[Chris Farmer]

No spoilers here, anything that could be a spoiler has been carefully phrased to remain ambiguous unless you've read the book.

Moe, that's a very good question, and one I had wondered myself. What was the cause of death? That said, I don't think there will be a return, as Dumbledore said quite firmly in Goblet that nothing can bring back the dead. Nonetheless, the way things happened does give you reason to wonder...

Anyway, excellent book. I'd say best in the series, I'd rate them Order, Goblet, Prisoner, Chamber, Sorceror. The story for Order was far more mature then the others, the ending of Goblet was rough, but this was the first book that I would say flat out is NOT a kid's book in any way. At most it's for pre-teens, but I wouldn't let any kid who hasn't reached double digits read it alone. With a parent, maybe, but not alone. But Order was still fantastic. Sure, it meandered, but it was a Tolkien style meandering, where it added depth and richness to the world instead of just being pointless. The characters were easily at their best, with a richness of development that hadn't yet been seen. This isn't James Bond, where things happen in a vacuum and nothing stays across episodes. These characters have been shaped by what they've been through, and the world has been shaped by what they did. This is seen most of all in the DA and the events leading up to it, the kids in this story aren't blind to what has happened.

Oh, Fred and George also had two scenes that completely stole the book. I had to stop reading for about five minutes because I couldn't even see the book my eyes were so teared up from laughing.

Incidentally, best story for reading it. My little sister, Abby, went to pick it up at midnight the 21st (I didn't get to read it until yesterday, was at Philmont as a crew advisor for two weeks, long story). After that, she came home with my mom, got home around one, and had finished the book by 9 AM that day. She's going into the 8th grade, and read that book in 8 hours flat while extremely tired. It took me 12 or so, and I'm 21 (of course I had a lot more distractions, but still). That's impressive.

 

[Michael Fennessy]

Not sure if Rowling will use the "theme?" that alot of other fantasy writers have used, but Maybe Harry, as the Chosen One, CAN bring someone back from the dead. In many magic/Fantasy stories, this bit is used. Maybe he will be the one that can break the Veil.

 

[Danny R]

What was the significance of the Veil that Sirius passes through? Is it a doorway to the afterlife? Was Sirius killed by Bellatrix Lestrange, or did he die when he slid through the veil and into the afterlife?

Yes, its a window into the afterlife. My impression is that you aren't supposed to enter it, but simply to use it to speak to those on the other side. Sirius died because he went through

As for why Hermione isn't in Ravenclaw... I think the answer is that she also meets all the requirements of Griffindor... mainly that she's quite brave.

This obviously isn't the first time Ravenclaw has been shafted. Other exceptionally talented wizards such as Dumbledore and Voldemart didn't go to that house either, and both are described as very intelligent and powerful wizards.

--

I liked the plot of the last book better than the others, but Harry's whining and yelling was annoying. I hope its gone by the time the next book roles around.