And in the end, it was just this fantastic story about a kid on an incredible journey
So... no one I know has finished it yet (given that the one person I thought would pass me is slumbering peacefully on the couch in my basement, somewhere around page 275), but... damn. Just... lovely
I'll post a more in-depth review when I have more time to gather my thoughts, but just walking away from it, just having put the book down, tucked Claire in, and walked up to my room, I am simply in awe. The entire night, screaming children and long lines and costume contests be damned, I kept telling myself, this was it, after this, it was over. I'd never queue for another Harry story; in a few short hours, there'd be no eager anticipation as to how it all finally, finally, finally ended. It was weird to see kids running around who weren't even alive when the first book came out all these years ago, and here were the faithful, just sticking by.
This was the best book yet. It was the most detailed, most introspective, most gut-wrenching of the seven, and I simply could not stop turning the pages. The death count was high, yes, but for the most part, felt honest. The build up was gradual - Hedwig's shocking end, Moody's off-screen demise, and then Dobby, sweet, wonderful Dobby, and oh JK, she pulls my heart strings. Little did I know it would get worse - one of my beloved twins? Tonks and Remus? Snape's death was expected, and though I didn't really feel the whole he-loved-Lily vibe, I can get onboard with it.
I really liked both Ron and Hermione in this book. Sometimes, as much as I love Ron, my patience with him wears thin, but I thought he was just so utterly Ron in this volume that I couldn't help but adore him. Hermione, the same. Always the clever one, resourceful, providing the right balance of assurance and doubt. I won't lie - when Ron abandoned them, my shipper heart did a little dance, though JK had made it painfully clear that Harry's interest lie with Ginny. (I'm a little miffed, not because my favorite couple was absolutely obliterated as any kind of loose canon, but because I still have no emotional attachment to her character.) Shipping aside, I just loved the different interactions, the seperation of Harry, Ron and Hermione from all the other contacts, guidance and experience the Order would typically provide.
I didn't feel that the Deathly Hallows bit was overdone in the least. I think it was very much like Dumbledore described it to Harry on the platform - he had to be willing to die, and in doing so, he proved how very much he deserved to live. I don't think his survival cheapened it at all. Simply, it made his death more powerful, as he had truly earned the priviledge to unite the three and surivive. The Battle for Hogwarts, Dumbledore's backstory... I am still just reeling at how seemlessly the final strings tied together. This book was seriously six in the making. There's no way this story could have been told in any less detail - but at the same time, I think it shows what a good story this is, what an incredible journey that I don't think much about Quirrell anymore or the DADA of the book, and I'd find myself constantly going back, oh yes, I remember so and so and some such...
My only complaint is the epilogue, which I will ignore in my further exploration of HP in months to come. Not because it ended Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione, but because it gave me this sense of happily ever after that failed to resonate with the events of the book. I also didn't see nearly enough George Weasley; I mean, it was his bloody twin who died. The names just seemed so muddled, and I had trouble telling who belonged to who. I'm glad that Harry got the 2.5 (okay, 3) kids and the dog (okay, owl) he always wanted, but it didn't resonate true with the rest of the series. It wasn't an in-depth enough look for me to know how Harry Potter really lived as he aged, just this glimpse. I'm sure that's what JK wanted, but after 750 pages of such intricate detail and careful storytelling, I just felt like the epilogue left me with more questions than answers.
Still, though. Here's to a book series that, I know, changed my life for the better. Way to go out with a bang, Jo.
I'll post a more in-depth review when I have more time to gather my thoughts, but just walking away from it, just having put the book down, tucked Claire in, and walked up to my room, I am simply in awe. The entire night, screaming children and long lines and costume contests be damned, I kept telling myself, this was it, after this, it was over. I'd never queue for another Harry story; in a few short hours, there'd be no eager anticipation as to how it all finally, finally, finally ended. It was weird to see kids running around who weren't even alive when the first book came out all these years ago, and here were the faithful, just sticking by.
This was the best book yet. It was the most detailed, most introspective, most gut-wrenching of the seven, and I simply could not stop turning the pages. The death count was high, yes, but for the most part, felt honest. The build up was gradual - Hedwig's shocking end, Moody's off-screen demise, and then Dobby, sweet, wonderful Dobby, and oh JK, she pulls my heart strings. Little did I know it would get worse - one of my beloved twins? Tonks and Remus? Snape's death was expected, and though I didn't really feel the whole he-loved-Lily vibe, I can get onboard with it.
I really liked both Ron and Hermione in this book. Sometimes, as much as I love Ron, my patience with him wears thin, but I thought he was just so utterly Ron in this volume that I couldn't help but adore him. Hermione, the same. Always the clever one, resourceful, providing the right balance of assurance and doubt. I won't lie - when Ron abandoned them, my shipper heart did a little dance, though JK had made it painfully clear that Harry's interest lie with Ginny. (I'm a little miffed, not because my favorite couple was absolutely obliterated as any kind of loose canon, but because I still have no emotional attachment to her character.) Shipping aside, I just loved the different interactions, the seperation of Harry, Ron and Hermione from all the other contacts, guidance and experience the Order would typically provide.
I didn't feel that the Deathly Hallows bit was overdone in the least. I think it was very much like Dumbledore described it to Harry on the platform - he had to be willing to die, and in doing so, he proved how very much he deserved to live. I don't think his survival cheapened it at all. Simply, it made his death more powerful, as he had truly earned the priviledge to unite the three and surivive. The Battle for Hogwarts, Dumbledore's backstory... I am still just reeling at how seemlessly the final strings tied together. This book was seriously six in the making. There's no way this story could have been told in any less detail - but at the same time, I think it shows what a good story this is, what an incredible journey that I don't think much about Quirrell anymore or the DADA of the book, and I'd find myself constantly going back, oh yes, I remember so and so and some such...
My only complaint is the epilogue, which I will ignore in my further exploration of HP in months to come. Not because it ended Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione, but because it gave me this sense of happily ever after that failed to resonate with the events of the book. I also didn't see nearly enough George Weasley; I mean, it was his bloody twin who died. The names just seemed so muddled, and I had trouble telling who belonged to who. I'm glad that Harry got the 2.5 (okay, 3) kids and the dog (okay, owl) he always wanted, but it didn't resonate true with the rest of the series. It wasn't an in-depth enough look for me to know how Harry Potter really lived as he aged, just this glimpse. I'm sure that's what JK wanted, but after 750 pages of such intricate detail and careful storytelling, I just felt like the epilogue left me with more questions than answers.
Still, though. Here's to a book series that, I know, changed my life for the better. Way to go out with a bang, Jo.