Rowling herself said that this book would either be loved or loathed by fans of the series. I can't imagine how she felt sitting down to write this book under the enormous pressure of ten years' anticipation. She could have never guessed at the enormity of her fan base, never presumed that the grand finale of her seven-part brainchild would sell 8.3 million copies in its first 24 hours of sale. And with all the questions she presented in the book's six predecessors, she was going to be hard-pressed to answer them all.
Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows was by far the darkest and most intense of Harry's adventures. From the opening chapter that ends with Avada Kedavra to a departure from Privet Drive fraught with tension, injury and death, the book begins with a decidedly adult tone. From there it breaks the mold from the typical Potter structure - the Privet Drive scene is the only standby. Gone is the scarlet steam engine and the great stone walls of Hogwarts and the introduction of a new DADA teacher. And we are every bit as disoriented outside of the confines of Hogwarts as Harry, Ron and Hermione.
And perhaps it is this shoved out of the nest feeling that had me sympathizing even more deeply with the trio as they grappled with decisions that had to be made without guidance or wisdom. In the end, they had each other, and at times, no one. It is the realization of all that Rowling has given them over the past six books, and while they would be at Hogwarts in a perfect world, it's not a perfect world, and thus it is befitting that Harry, Ron and Hermione spend their coming of age year in utter turmoil.
While Rowling is hurtling us through the plot with its bumps and twists, she draws heavily from the rest of the cannon, almost as though she's bringing back each memory for us to bid farewell to right alongside her. Sirius' motorbike, the Deluminator, the Golden Snitch, the tent from the world cup, Phineas Nigellus' portrait from Grimauld Place, Sir Cadagon clanking through the halls of Hogwarts, mandrakes, Gringotts and levicorpus. It's like a free-fall through the magical world.
The complexity of the overall plot surprised me. I had thought, like many, that the deathly hallows referred to the horcruxes, and so the deathly hallows storyline was an added layer I wasn't anticipating. And while some may think it made it overly complex, I think that it gave the book one of the hallmarks of the whole series - it gave Harry a choice. For a moment - a heart-stopping moment - I thought it was going to be the most painful choice in all of fiction.
While I might quibble with a few of the things left out and a few of the things left in, my overall response to the Deathly Hallows was intense, emotional and exhausted. I felt the triumphs and the tragedies more profoundly than any of the other books. And I think that JK Rowling did an utterly magnificent job of finalizing the series. I can't believe it's over - just like that - swish and flick. But it was a hell of a ride.
beautiful testimony. I'll wait until others start up the commenting before I continue my long-windedness. . . off to bed, where I'm sure fanciful HP dreams await me.
I feel humbled to be alive for the release of classic series. I've heard many quibbles in the last few days and I have some of my own, but few few few about the way this story was written and presented. I was astounded by how many strings were pulled together by this novel, how much was drawn from, how satisfying it was to feel everything come together.
Can you start a thread about best parts?
I'm still basking in the brilliance of Book 7. It's a happy place to go in one's mind, pondering Harry Potter. I have a few quibbles, just here and there, but on the whole, it was magic the way she pulled it all together. I think of each of the preceding 6 books, and how now going back to read them will be all more satisfying and amazing, that she really was weaving and weaving all along.
A best parts thread would be great. I keep going back to the Battle of Hogwarts, and the delightfully inventive ways that it was protected.
And Molly Weasley offing Bellatrix. I don't know why her saying "bitch" was so shocking, but it was.
Book 7 was brilliant, and I am just so amazed at how she brought everything together, yet still managed to add additional layers of complexity even as she was wrapping everything up.
I don't have any major complaints at all, except the epilogue. The only thing I can't seem to get over, though, is Fred's death. There's a part of me that wishes she could have changed that one thing. I know that battle couldn't come without a cost. . . but Fred? :( Somehow it's so much harder to swallow than the other deaths.
In the wake of my terrible attempt, I am so glad that you can compose a well thought out review!
Reading your thoughts on the book makes me remember the things that I really liked about it. I want to be madly in love with it and get a warm fuzzy feeling when I reflect upon it but I just don't. If I were to give a general glean of the book it would be war, lots of time in a tent, umpteen near misses with Voldemort and a finale that was less spectacular than I had envisioned. Once I go and look deeper than that I can see and appreciate other well thought out plots and twists within but I just can't get past the fact that I think Harry should have died. I feel treacherous for having that thought but it's there nonetheless.
I fully intend to reread the book soon and I hope hope hope to have different feelings. Maybe when I actually take the time to digest everything, slowly, instead of blazing through in a frenzy, I will come to see what (seemingly) everyone else sees.
I agree with your treacherous thoughts, Megan. I felt strongly about that before the book and even bet my dad a six pack of beer that it would happen. I felt it was inevitable and I still feel that, though I am relieved that he lived.
I never believed Harry was a horcrux--that shocked me, thought everyone predicted it and I want to talk about it when we talk about things that are still confusing to us.
Once it was revealed that he was, though, it seemed even more important that he fulfill his destiny and die. I loved that he cast a shield charm over the right side by his sacrifice (though I don't attribute it to being a Christ-figure. I've heard that bandied about).
I guess what I have to say is that, though I think she slithered out of a loophole, and I've never seen her shrink from a place the story was going, and I'm sad about it, I'm gladder that he lived.
Harry is The Boy Who Lived, and I never thought it would have been right for him to die. I thought she handled it all masterfully... in my humble opinion.
I wonder, didn't JKR say at one point while writing that she changed her mind about a character's death and made it someone else? I'm wondering if it was supposed to be Percy, and then she made it Fred. Because as soon as Percy came back, I felt so strongly that he was a goner. But then maybe she went for Fred because it intense in a different way. George losing his twin, and friends, family and fans losing a character that they've been attached to all along... it had to be someone whose death at least had that weight to it, to fully illustrate the horror of Voldemort and stakes of the battle.
I'm glad you started this blog!! Thanks for giving us a place to talk about this.
...Though, I really have nothing new to add. I just loved the book. That's all. :)
Wonderfully written, Ash. It sounds as if you might have your very own magic quill scribbling down everything... I finished the book on Monday, and it would seem from the comments posted here, that I have a less favorable opinion than others about the flourish of Bk 7. I will then defer to the prose writers for the full commentaries...! It was, however, an enjoyable break from the regular reading. Very nice.