Never fear, dear readers, I am not skipping ahead, and am still working my way through Goblet of Fire. We did, however, just return from seeing “Order of the Phoenix,” so I am reporting on it.

First of all, people in movie theatres talk way too much. I rather wish that they would not, because it makes it very difficult for me to enjoy movies. The same goes for rustling, chewing in my ear, and dropping loud things on the ground and then giggling.

At any rate, I went with a large mixed group. The reception was for the most part positive, although Baxt did not like the movie very much at all, making some very valid points about the film. Of course, we had to stand outside the theatre for half an hour after we got out, viciously dissecting every scene of the movie and complaining about things that got left out. Brendan, who reads the books after he sees the movies, seemed thoroughly confused by much of our animated conversation outside.

My opinion was that the film was reasonably good, although there were some definite weak points. As in the past, my major criticism of the movie was that it cut out all the plot points not directly related to Harry, even if it weakened the overall plot and feel of the movie. I also felt like they set up some awkwardness for themselves later on by leaving bits out.

In true nerd fashion, here are some scenes I wanted to see that weren’t in the movie:

• McGonagall’s class getting inspected, and a great number of scenes with her in general. I thought she stood up to Umbridge well in the book, and that was important. Also, she’s a great actress and a great character.
• St. Mungo’s at Christmas, which was a really great scene…with some interesting information, too.
• Marietta Edgecombe and the “sneak” episode.
• More of the Department of Mysteries. We saw the Hall of Prophecy and the weird room with the veil, and that was it.
• The whole plot with Harry coming out to The Quibbler, and the return of Rita Skeeter. Where was that? Hello?
• The locket, and other scenes in and around the Black household.
• Hagrid being taken away, and McGonagall being injured.

I did not like the timing of certain scenes at all. I did not agree with the Weasley brothers escaping during the OWLs, since in the book they make a big point of respecting academics and they ruined that in the movies. I also really didn’t like Neville telling Harry about his parents, because I thought it was far more powerful for the trio to stumble on the parents in the hospital. Snape whisking Harry away for Occlumency didn’t work for me either, and I didn’t like the abridgment of Dumbledore’s great escape. And what was up with the centaur scene? In the book, Hermione shows her weakness by trying to manipulate the centaurs, and that didn’t happen in the movie at all. In fact, many of the scenes which cast the characters in a bad light were cut, and I thought that was a poor choice.

And will they please stop changing things? The continuity issues are driving me absolutely batty.

However, there were some things I liked. I liked Umbridge a great deal, and I loved her office with the horrible kitten plates. I also enjoyed the showy battle between Dumbledore and Voldemort, although I think they could have spent the film’s budget on some more interesting things. I absolutely loved Luna, I thought she was an excellent actress and a very good fit for the role. And the thestrals were excellent. I enjoyed the fact that the movie was more dark, and slimy, slippery, not as sunny and friendly as the last ones were. It was far more mature, for certain, especially the scene of Harry’s detention.

I’m not sure what my rating is yet. I need to digest the movie a bit more. But I think it is certainly worth seeing.

[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]

I’m getting caught up on my Harry Potter, having just finished book the third. Originally I was going to try and get Order of the Phoenix read in time for the movie on Wednesday, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I am certainly going to finish book six by 21 July, though.

Anyway, Prisoner of Azkaban has never really been one of my favorites. It’s the only book (thus far) in which Harry doesn’t deal directly with Voldemort, and maybe that’s why. I’ve always just felt like it’s decent, rather than awesome, even with all the foreshadowing that happens.

Starting with: why does Snape hate Harry so much? I mean, Snape has a serious beef with the poor kid, and I feel like the explanations posited in the books are pretty weak. Is Snape really so petty and childish that he resents Harry for being the child of a school rival? I mean, I don’t really have any school rivals, but I would like to think that I would treat their children fairly, if I ended up teaching them. Is it possible that Snape was in love with Lily, and hates Harry because he was spurned by his mother? Yet, at the same time, feels some kind of connection because he’s Lily’s kid? I’m not sure…

But Snape certainly seems hungry for acceptance and public accolades.

More talk about people being inside each other, as well, towards the end of the book when we have the Harry-Dumbledore heart to heart. Dumbledore talks about Harry finding his father in him, which is probably meant metaphorically. But…what if it’s not? Is it possible, as Dumbledore says, that the foursome of childhood friends really did walk the Hogwarts grounds that night?

Which reminds me, speaking of Horcruxes…do souls mature along with their owners, even when separated from the body? Or do they remain frozen in the time that they were removed? I feel like Tom Riddle’s diary captures Voldemort as a teenager, but the teenager knows all about Voldemort’s later life and career. Is this because he is/was part of Voldemort, or because Ginny gave him the scoopage? If so, does he have the same magical knowledge and powers which Voldemort has?

And what is up with the giant squid? He pops up in every book, have you noticed? I think that the squid has a role to play still, because why else would Rowling put him in there? I mean, I love squid, so maybe I have been paying more attention than other people. And this lends ammunition to my “everyone must return to Hogwarts” idea. Oh, yes.

I also note that this is the third book in which an intelligent magical “creature” has been introduced. In the frist we meet the centaurs, sentient beings with immense powers and abilities. In the second we see Dobby the house elf, who is clearly intelligent and extremely magical. Next, we meet Lupin, who I guess is technically not a magical creature, but he does sort of turn into one. I wonder where Rowling is going with this…

[Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban]

Two weeks to go!

Alright, I admit, it took me longer to read this one than Philosopher’s Stone. I actually finished it on Wednesday, but things have been so crazy that I didn’t have a chance to write about it until now. I also read this book with particular care, since Rowling has repeatedly said that it has a large number of important clues. She also said it was her favourite, at one point, but that was before Half Blood Prince, so that might have changed. At any rate, I went through it with a fine toothed comb, looking for anything and everything which might be relevant.

To begin with, Harry is definitely a Horcrux, as indicated by this scene:

“…transferred some of his own powers to you the night he gave you that scar. Not something he intended to do, I’m sure…”

“Voldemort put a bit of himself in me?” Harry said, thunderstruck.

“It certainly seems so.”

I also noted that Dumbledore seemed to understand what the diary was almost immediately. He talks about the diary being “brilliant,” and adds that Voldemort was “the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen.” It sounds like Dumbledore has awe and appreciation for Voldemort, as well as some sadness about how evil Voldemort became. It’s important to remember that the books deal with the corruption of innocence, not just brave Harry against an evil adversary. Alas, I think it is too late for Voldemort to redeem himself, because he has become so much less than human.

Also, Dobby may know about the Horcruxes. He talks about it when he first comes to visit Harry on Privet Drive, saying that Voldemort has powers “no decent wizard” has. Since house elves are marginalized as worthless and they are skilled at coming and going without being seen, is it possible that Dobby has seen Voldemort making or talking about Horcruxes? The house elves may yet have an important role to play.

When Dumbledore is suspended by the governors, he says that he will have only truly left the school when no one there is loyal to him. In the context of the book, this means that Harry is able to get assistance from Fawkes by demonstrating his loyalty to Dumbledore. But…remember at the end of Half Blood Prince, when Harry says that he is “Dumbledore’s man,” even though Dumbledore is dead? Look, I realize it’s wishful thinking to believe that he’s still alive, but…I think that Dumbledore will be playing a role in book seven, if people go back to Hogwarts. This why I think it is important for everyone to go back to school. (Well, that, and I have a hard time with the idea of glorifying school drop outs.)

Speaking of Dumbledore, how about that ability to see through invisibility cloaks? And his ability to become invisible, as demonstrated in Philosopher’s Stone? And why would he have James’ invisibility cloak when James died if he can become invisible, anyway? Or did someone else pass the cloak on to Dumbledore…someone like…Snape?

I also think that one of the important themes in the book is the similarity between Harry and Voldemort. The book also has this big theme of personal choice, which Harry and Voldemort illustrate so beautifully. But I think it’s very telling that Voldemort picked Harry out as “the one,” rather than Neville, the child of pure-blood families. Voldemort himself is half blooded, a source of great irritation to him. But he finds commonality in Harry, perhaps seeing Harry as more of a potential threat than Neville would be.

Oh, the choices we make!

Furthermore, how magical is Hagrid, exactly? I mean, we know he was expelled from Hogwarts because he was raising an Acromantula in the castle. However, we know that he retained his wand, inside his pink flowery umbrella. And it occurs to me that he attempts a tricky bit of Transfiguration in Philosopher’s Stone, when he tried to turn Dudley into a pig. I am curious to know how Hagrid stacks up against fully trained witches and wizards…

Also, a shout out to Cheshire Books, the independent bookstore in Fort Bragg…which is, apparently, having a midnight release party, although they have not deigned to post signage about it anywhere. For those of us too lazy to go to Mendocino, this is good news. Cheshire Books is owned by an awesome lady who does a lot of really cool things for the community, so I am stoked to hear that they are celebrating the release in style…with a replica of Diagon Alley! Pretty awesome! They are happy to take your pre-orders at 964-5918.

[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets]

So, in preparation for 21 July, I am re-reading the previous six books. I gave myself plenty of time to do it, forgetting that they are all pretty easy reads. I just finished Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, and it’s amazing how riddled it is with little hints and clues. I must have been aware of that on some level, but since I’m savoring it slowly looking for meaning, a bunch of things jump out. Many of the things foreshadow later events, leaving me to wonder how much of book seven is actually included from the very beginning, if only I knew where to look. Mainly, the book leaves me with some questions.

For example, when Harry and Hermione get caught out of bed after handing Norbert off to Charlie’s friends, why didn’t they lie about what they were doing? I should think that “studying” is a pretty darn good excuse for being on top of the astronomy tower in the middle of the night, especially when Hermione is involved. And clearly they lie about other things, so it’s not as though Rowling thinks that lying is a problem. Granted, the resulting detention leads to an important scene in the forest, but it seems a little weak to me. Couldn’t there have been another way to orchestrate that? Or is it a subtle message that accepting punishment leads to greater rewards?

What is the deal with socks? Is it really just a throwaway? Or does Rowling have a secret sock obsession? Or is it possible that socks will play a vital role in the end of the saga? I’m not exactly sure how that would work, like maybe Voldemort would be trapped inside of a sock and then unraveled, but there are too many sock references for comfort.

How about that Draught of Living Death? It comes up in the first Potions class, but not again. That suggests, to me, that it might be important later. I know we’ve been over this before and it’s probably wishful thinking, but…are we sure that Dumbledore is dead? Especially when he says that he would trust Hagrid with his life…and note that Hagrid is the one who handles the body in book six.

Snape. Oh, Snape. I really do think he’s good. And I think that Rowling sends an important message, that it’s possible to dislike someone and still help them. And is it conceivably possible that Snape is conflicted within himself over his own emotions? Perhaps he hates the sight of Harry because it reminds him of episodes in his past…and perhaps he also secretly cares deeply for Harry because he liked Harry’s mother, and Harry is a living connection to Lily. Especially when Snape passed on the information which led to Lily’s death…might he feel just a bit remorseful about that?

And Malfoy. I really do think that Malfoy is the worst sort of little wanker. Desperate for power and social status, he goes to any lengths to get what he wants, and doesn’t really care about the consequences. I know that some people felt sorry for Malfoy after book six, and I just don’t. Malfoy got what he deserved. That might not be quite how Rowling wants me to view it, but there it is. I think she intended to suggest that striving for power at all costs was dangerous, and that it could land you in a great deal of trouble. I also think that Malfoy might try to redeem himself in book seven. Possibly.

Is there a Horcrux in Hogwarts? It seems possible. We’re told that Gringotts is the safest place for anything (is there a Horcrux in Gringotts?) “‘cept maybe Hogwarts.” I’ll bet our dear friend Voldemort hid a Horcrux somewhere on his visit back to Hogwarts to lobby for the Defense Against the Dark Arts job. Knowing Voldemort, I wouldn’t be surprised to find it somewhere in Slytherin house, one of the few places in the castle we haven’t visited. Is it possible that Kreacher is going to retrieve it for Harry?

Will Harry live? I’ve been pretty firmly saying “no,” but then there’s this at the start of chapter 16: “In years to come, Harry would never quite remember…” This is an interesting choice of construction, because if he’s going to die in six years, framing things in terms of “years to come” seems a bit excessive. Perhaps Rowling included that for a reason, suggesting that there would in fact be “years to come” for Harry?

What do you see in the first Harry Potter book? I’ll be posting my individual thoughts on each book as I finish, and you all should jump in on them.

[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]

21 days and counting, kids. I hope you’ve reserved your copy at a local independent bookstore, and if you’re in Mendo, I’ll see you at Gallery Bookshop! (They’re having a pajama and movie party, for anyone local who wasn’t aware. Yeah pajama party! Alas, my pajamas are not small child appropriate.)

So, anyway, on to the heart of the matter. The other day, I was watching an interview panel of Harry Potter geeks, including Emerson Spartz from Mugglenet. In the interview, he mentioned that “Harry was made into a horcrux.” I was kind of surprised to hear that, since I thought Rowling had specifically said that Harry was not, in fact, a horcrux. I was fairly certain that this had been reported on Mugglenet, so I rummaged through their archives and discovered that I was apparently hallucinating. No statement from Rowling to that effect had been made, which opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me.

Having confirmed that Rowling hasn’t ruled out that possibility, I am going to go ahead and say that yes, Harry is a horcrux. I’ll jump on board with the popular theory that after the failure of the Avada Kedavra curse on Harry, the already prepared horcrux spell entered Harry, without Voldemort’s knowledge.

Which suggests that there may actually be eight horcruxes, since Voldemort clearly would have wanted to make seven. I am of two minds on the details of this issue. One theory says that Harry is a horcrux and Voldemort doesn’t know, because Voldemort seems to try and kill him every time they meet. If Harry is a horcrux, it explains the innate connection between Harry and Voldemort, and it may also explain why Voldemort can touch Harry after he comes back to life? If Voldemort doesn’t know that he made Harry a horcrux, he would end up with one more horcrux that he thought he had, which could turn out to be very important.

My other theory is that Voldemort did not mean to make Harry a horcrux, but he does know. This may be why Snape has helped to save Harry’s life so many times. Either Snape works for Voldemort and Voldemort has instructed him to keep Harry alive, or Snape is working for the Order (my vote) and is keeping Harry alive on Voldemort’s orders and because he hopes it will lead to the defeat of Voldemort.

My even more far fetched and extreme theory is that Harry is a horcrux, all right…but it’s not Voldemort’s soul he’s holding. Instead, he has part of Lily’s soul, and perhaps James’ as well. Crazy? Probably. But…there are a few clues which suggest that I am not totally insane. For one thing, we don’t know that much about horcruxes, other than that they are created through murder. Is it possible that Lily and/or James split into a horcrux? Especially given that Sirius talks about Harry’s parents living on in him, perhaps this is not entirely metaphorical.

So, the question is…if Harry is a horcrux, how are we going to fix this problem? I still think that Harry is going to die, sacrificing himself for the greater good. However, Spartz raised an interesting point. Why would Rowling have introduced Dementors, creatures which suck out human souls? The Dementors have already played an important role in the book, but is it possible that they are also the key to extracting the horcrux? Hm?

I guess we’ll find out in 21 days.

[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]

Exactly one month from now, I will be done with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, having snagged it at midnight from a local independent bookstore* and stayed up reading until I was done.

I am both excited and sort of sad.

I first met Harry Potter in 2000, when I was traveling in Ireland with friends. We were stuck far from civilization without a car, and I hitched into Kenmare one day to do some shopping. I also browsed at the bookstore, and picked up an assortment of books that looked interesting, including a piece of children’s fiction about a boy wizard. Sadly, I left my first copy behind in Ireland, although I have since replaced it.

I sort of forgot about Harry Potter until several years later, when I picked up another book, dug it, and decided that I needed to read the rest. In 2003, I waited with eagerness for the release of Order of the Phoenix, shamelessly waiting with bated breath at midnight, along with numerous children. At work the next day, everyone asked me how it went. After several glares from members of the public who obviously had not read it yet, I started taking coworkers to the back room one by one for the review. I did the same in 2005 for Half Blood Prince, staying up all night before an important job interview to read it. (I didn’t get the job, in case you were wondering, but I don’t think it was Harry Potter related.)

It will be an odd moment to close the cover and think well, that’s that, then. How much stranger it must have been for Rowling, who has been working on the series for over 10 years. And strange indeed to know what is going to happen to all of these characters while the world goes crazy with speculation, rumours, and elaborate hoaxes. I’m sure that some of our blathering must seem highly amusing to Rowling.

I may not be nearly as fanatical about the books as some zealous individuals, and that is probably, upon reflection, a good thing. (Have you ever searched for Draco/Harry slash fiction? Eek. I mean, yikes.) But it will be fun and deeply satisfying to finish the series at last and talk it over with other fans of the books. Years of gleeful dissection lie ahead. I firmly believe that Rowling is a highly sophisticated and mature writer, and I am looking forward to seeing how she thinks things should end. I am also looking forward to the howling cries of rage from the fan community, no matter what she does…

This is kind of an aside, but I wonder if Rowling’s first and middle names were initially published as “J.K.” to allow little boys to imagine that the books might have been written by a man, a la “Franklin W. Dixon” and the Hardy Boys? Have we come so far, as a society?

*Amazon, as soon as the post office is willing to deliver millions of books simultaneously at midnight, you let me know. Until then, this is yet another clear instance of the independents having you beat. If you haven’t located one yet, Potter Parties has a listing of Harry Potter release parties across the country, and in some parts of the world as well. For some reason I don’t see Gallery Bookshop’s party listed (hey guys, someone on staff should probably submit!) This seems to be a general trend with independents, which are slacking on the advertising. Bad call, guys!

21 July is rapidly approaching, and I think that I may actually explode with curiosity before the book comes out. Given that spoilers are starting to fly thick and fast, I thought I would organize some of my predictions, so that I can come back in two months and mock all of them for being so dreadfully wrong. This is, of course, the point of piquing curiosity and prolonging the suspense. If I were JK Rowling, I would totally troll the Internet now and then looking for particularly humorous predictions. (I would also, of course, send me a copy of the manuscript, with the understanding that I wouldn’t tell anyone. Wait…if I was JK Rowling and I was sending myself a…anyway, you know what I mean.)

Anyway. Without further ado, my predictions for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Hagrid will die, probably early in the book. We’ve seen a theme in the last few books, with Harry losing a major figure in his life. I hate to say it, but Hagrid is a pretty excellent choice for the next in line. By eating it early on, he will set the tone for the rest of the book, which I think will be much darker.

The fact that Bill was bitten by Fenrir Greyback will become important and relevant. I’m not sure how, yet. But I suspect Rowling mutilated him for a reason beyond putting Fleur in a good light. Maybe he will develop werewolfish tendencies, or extreme strength, or good vision during the full moon. Something about it will help decide the outcome of the final battle.

Rowling has said that someone non-magical will demonstrate magical ability. I’m putting my money on Filch. I feel like she’s had a go at him in every book, setting him as sort of a comic, bumbling figure, but that he might redeem himself at the last minute. Perhaps even heroically.

Snape will turn out to be on the side of the Order, or good, or whatever you want to call it. He’s my favourite character in the books, because of the immense complexity which he has demonstrated. I really doubt that Rowling would let us down by just making him evil. Would she?

Harry is so dying. I mean, so is Voldemort. But I don’t see a little cottage in the countryside and living happily every after for Harry. No. Way. He certainly will not become Minister of Magic, nor will he teach at Hogwarts.

Arthur Weasley as Minister of Magic? Possibly? I’m going out on a limb here.

Cho Chang still has something to do. She’s extremely intelligent, and I cannot imagine her character just drifting into the background.

Neville Longbottom will distinguish himself in some way, beyond the ways in which he has already done so. His relationship with Luna will undoubtedly develop further, and I think the two will be important. Rowling has a way of building respect for the odd which I rather like.

Hermione and Ron will assist Harry with whatever he ends up doing. Because Hermione is so focused on school and Rowling values education, I doubt that the three will become dropouts. I have a sense that Hogwarts will reopen and that the three may take classes there, or receive education independently. I would be rather disappointed in Rowling for making school dropouts into heroes, myself. If the school does reopen, we will obviously be introduced to two new people, and possibly three, given that Snape is gone, Minerva McGonagall may be promoted to headmistress, and Slughorn only agreed to serve for a year.

I also suspect that we will be introduced to some new and totally sweet magical creature, but maybe I am wrong. In addition, I believe that we will have a scene for comic relief with Fred and George, who will also continue to manufacture defense against the dark arts supplies.

I’m sure that some ardent fans will passionately disagree with me, but the proof will come on 21 July…

[Harry Potter predictions]

Harry Potter fans are, of course, on top of their game.

Hence, numerous fan made trailers for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on YouTube. Every time I think I’m pretty nerdy, someone goes and tops me, but this one is far and away my favourite. It’s well edited, and completely awesome.

I feel a little odd, today, mulling over the incidents at Virginia Tech yesterday and looking at fan-made Harry Potter trailers on YouTube. A bit of cognitive dissonance, though, is good for the soul. I am no less eager to find out what happens next that I was in 2005, when I stayed up all night before an important job interview reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoebix, and I am eagerly awaiting 21 July, which is less than 100 days away.

[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]

Last week, I preordered my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at Cody’s, so that I knew it would be there when I attended the anticipated midnight release party. Cody’s is offering a 30% discount on the book to individuals who preorder, which is a substantial difference from the 46% that Amazon is currently offering, or even the 40% that Barnes and Noble is offering to their customers.

So why buy from Cody’s?

Because supporting independent bookstores is important to me.

Were I to order from Amazon or B&N, I would be supporting big box bookstores, a sector of the economy that I am not a big fan of. Independents sell more interesting books, have more dedicated staff, and contribute to their communities. Big box bookstores are happy to take your money, but they will not route it back into your community, and their staff tend to be underpaid as well.

The book costs more at Cody’s because they cannot afford to discount the book much more. The big box stores are counting on the sales of other books in tandem with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to make a profit, while Cody’s and other independents cannot afford to take that risk. Unlike Amazon, they have to pay for actual store space and skilled personnel to staff it.

At Cody’s, I can wander in and say “hey, there was this book in the Chronicle book review with a, uh, red cover…”

And someone on the staff will go:

“Oh, yes, was it this book?”

Amazon cannot do that.

At Cody’s, I can get a recommendation based on an actual person’s opinion, and that actual person will take me to the spot on the shelf where the book is, tell me about similar books, and often provide a brief and interesting note of history, as well.

Barnes and Noble does not offer that—the last time I was in a B&N, the staff was unfailingly rude.

At Cody’s, I know that the money I spend stays here in the Bay Area, because the store is locally run and operated, and that means that I am supporting my own economy, rather than a distant one. Cody’s also has book events and donates to their community, and come midnight on 21 July, I’ll be paying a little more for an eagerly anticipated book because…well, because it’s worth it to me, that’s why.

Is it worth it to you?

So much for all of my predictions, and 21 July it is for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, according to JK Rowling. Let the Pottermania begin: Half Blood Prince sold almost seven million copies on the first night…I would be awfully surprised if Deathly Hallows didn’t top it. The sales certainly will: the list price is $34.99, which is the highest I’ve ever seen for a children’s paperback. This had better be one thick-ass book, is all I’m saying.

According to Rowling’s accouncement on her website, the book: “will be published on Saturday 21st July at 00:01 BST in the UK and at 00:01 in the USA. It will also be released at 00:01 BST in other English speaking countries around the world.” So, apparently, readers in Hawaii will have to wait 11 hours after it is released in Britain to get their hands on a copy, but Canadians get it when it’s midnight in Britain. No fair! We’re a former colony too!

[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]