Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows

[Ruan Chun Xian]

I hated how this book is a perfect example of how 'heroes never die'.

I mean, he gave himself to voldemort, yet he lived.

how ironic.

I don't think "heroes never die". In fact, I think the opposite. Heroes in fantasy die more often than not. In fact, a fanfic writer has covered this for me:

She [Hermione] gestured to her books. “I was looking for something to read, and, well, there’s a trend in my books that bothers me.” She went over and began pulling out some books. “I was looking at all these books about heroes and, well, Robin Hood, Hercules, and Sigurd were murdered. Cuchulain, Brian Boru, Bellerophon, Theseus and Jason came to bad ends. Beowulf won against Grendel and his mother, but lost against the dragon.

She walked over to her bookcase as she continued her depressing catalog. “The whole Roundtable couldn’t save Arthur. Most of the Fianna died violently. Roland dies in battle. The city of Troy is destroyed, and the Greeks didn’t get happy endings, either. I mean, Odysseus finally managed to get home, but none of his crew did. And… I don’t want Harry to die.”

I think the last sentence describes what many HP fans would want. I don't see Harry as a hero in the same sense as people like Superman or Spiderman or whatever. They spend all their lives fighting evil. Harry just struggles through 7 years of it and is too happy to get rid of it. He doesn't actively look out for it ("I don't go looking for trouble, trouble usually finds me.") and would rather it was not him having to deal with it. He's different in that he struggles (rather realistically) though his fighting evil. In reality, Harry is normal as anyone, just a tad more talented than most his age in Quidditch and DADA. Without the scar he wouldn't be anything really that spectacular.

And Harry lived because he gave himself up. I like the ending of him living happily as someone normal, rather than dying and being treated as this great hero and glorified forever by the entire wizarding world. (Of course he's still being glorified by it would had been worst if he were dead). Simplicity is what he always wanted, after all, and he got it.

[Caitlin]

And rightly so. Heroes shouldn't die; there's enough depressing **** in real life to deal with. When people actually have a choice as to how a story's going to end, it should always be happy. One less thing I have to worry about.

Edited August 30, 2007 by Caitlin

[Survivor Rob]

Well i wanted to read it on the release date but was too busy reading books for IB History! that i had to wait two weeks!

When i eventually read it i thought it was FINE but i do think it could have been beefed out a bit by more battles and less "i'm at the Burrow "YAY"".

I thought one of the 3 mains would die and was surprised when they didnt!.....most uncomfortable death=DOBBY!

SO anyway overall it was a very good ending book of the series but more could have been done throughout the book to give the series a true send off (don't ask what those events would have been though!)

[luami]

For me there was nothing more fascinating than Snape's love for Lily and how they dedicated (was it one chapter?) for his background. His story really caught me, it was probably my favorite chapter. Really love Snape

[Guest julz_90]

I LOVED THE BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was on hols in ireland, backpacking with two friends (two other bookoholics :innocent: )

we bought the book at 0:00 on july 21st, went back to the hostel and started reading (luckily there was nobody else in the dormitory...)

we read until 7am, then I slept 2 hours - I was on a bike tour the whole day long, when I returned at 6pm I resumed reading and finished on the same day...

[cixelsyD]

Lol.. my parents didn't let me read the book until I was done my summerschool courses >.

So.. on the day I got home from my final exam, I started reading (around 4:00 pm) and didn't stop until I was done at around 2:00 am

[Ruan Chun Xian]

I got the book on my last day at home for the winter vacation and I was flying back to Sydney later that day. The book came out in Hanoi at 7.30 am. I was at the book shop at 6.30am. I thought I was crazy. There were people there earlier than I was. >

I got the book and paid and got home around 8. I read till about 12, had lunch, read some more from 1 until 3 when I had to leave for the airport. Yes, this is how I spent my last vacation day at home. Then I read on the 2 hour flight from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City and finished it just as the plane landed in HCMC around 8pm. So that's how many hours? 8-12 = 4, 1-3 = 2, 2 more hours. 8 hours in total. Not bad. Hehe.

[cixelsyD]

ah, I've never been a very fast reader.. but ironically I can speed read quite well

Crucial IB skills hehe

[Guest majofc]

Spoiler - Click me!

Well, I managed to read it the day it was released (after spending 4 hours inside a bookstore) and I really liked it. It was amazing how she managed to finish the whle horcruxes adventure in one book!!!! I hated that she killed Hedwig, but I guess she just had to die . Anyway, the other thing I did not liked was the epilogue. It was cruel to leave us with so many years of not knowing what happened!

[Close]

[ffaholic]

Hate the whole book. It went too much into the unrealistic world. Before, you could atleast relate to Harry on some level but now it's just become really lame and stupid.

[Ruan Chun Xian]

Hate the whole book. It went too much into the unrealistic world. Before, you could atleast relate to Harry on some level but now it's just become really lame and stupid.

If you say so.

Though whatever you found realistic about witches and wizards and stones that turn metal into gold, I don't know.

Sorry, just had to say that. I would leave you alone otherwise. Can't make everyone love it, I know.

[Guest iber2468]

Who is the biggest HP fan girl ever (of the series, not the guy... okay maybe both)?!

*RAISES HANDS*

*JUMP UP AND DOWN*

So far I've used HP references in TOK and English classes at a total of 3 times, and counting.

[Sauliooz]

i read it slow, like 2 chapters a day it was a torture to wait, but the minutes of reading were really exciting:)

and i've heard some of you saying that epilogue was too simple. i've wanted something like that in many books, and most of them have no endings. so to me the epilogue was like a gift, completing the book

[diabolicalangle]

lol... i read the "fake" version about 2 weeks bvefore it came out and the real version 3 days befpre it came out... it was ok, not my favourite out of the series

[pv02es]

Hm, I haven't read it yet but a few of my friends love Harry Potter and have already spoiled it for me. It sounds very decent from what you all are saying about it though, so I think that maybe I should read it over the summer.

The part at the end when they talk about Harry and Ginny's future together sounds pretty lame and pathetic though. The love parts of great movies and books are always the worst parts (ex- Padme and Anakin in Star Wars).

[cocomushroom]

I thought it amusing that Rowling would announce that Dumbledor was gay after the last one was released.

Was I the only one that thought it was a little bit of a stretch to see that he was gay until you went back and actually read it again???

[Ruan Chun Xian]

Hm, I haven't read it yet but a few of my friends love Harry Potter and have already spoiled it for me. It sounds very decent from what you all are saying about it though, so I think that maybe I should read it over the summer.

The part at the end when they talk about Harry and Ginny's future together sounds pretty lame and pathetic though. The love parts of great movies and books are always the worst parts (ex- Padme and Anakin in Star Wars).

The worst thing you can do is read/listen to spoilers and then say it's crap. And the epilogue, yes it is a little syrupy but the point is to show that they've all managed to move on. But yeah I know loads of people who dont like it.

I thought it amusing that Rowling would announce that Dumbledor was gay after the last one was released.

Was I the only one that thought it was a little bit of a stretch to see that he was gay until you went back and actually read it again???

No because NO WHERE in the book does it say he's gay. There are VERY subtle underlying suggestions but you can't possibly make up your mind just reading the books. She said it because she was asked a question. I really do believe it's not something she made up on the spot but something she'd known for a long time. If you ever write a really long story and make up your own characters you will find that sometimes they do just have to be a certain way for the story to work and with Dumbledore I really think it's a case of that.

[Bandev]

I kind of guessed that he was gay when I read the bit about Grindelwald in DH.

Edited April 9, 2008 by Bandev

[Ruan Chun Xian]

Yeah as I said there were very subtle hint that made you wonder...certainly Rita Skeeter's chapter in the biography talking about Grindelwald was hinting at it. Though to be honest at first I had a suspicion that Elphias Dodge was secretly in love with Dumbledore, the way he went on and on about Dumbledore and the way the obituary he wrote sounded. (If you're wondering who the heck is Elphias Dodge...erm, go reread the first couple of chapters of DH. )

[~Lc~]

Lol Hien how can you remember all these details? you should write your dissertation on Harry Potter