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[CCBC-Net] Final Harry Potter
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From: Ryan, Pat <PRyan>
Date: Sat, 4 Aug 2007 11:35:46 -0700
Great comments! I agree with most of them, both about the book and the movie. I'm glad our theater didn't lose power, especially during such a dramatic scene - how frustrating. I'm amazed everyone lasted ten minutes!
Umbridge was not what I expected visually in the movie - the pictures in the books are much closer to the descriptions - but her performance was excellent. I thought it very interesting that contact with a horcrux has such a negative impact on a person, which helps explain just how vile Umbridge was. I don't remember if it was explained just how Umbridge got the locket however.
Sure the Snape memory scenes were convenient - as my son would say a deus ex machina - but I still liked it. And I did get that Snape looking into Harry's eyes was looking into Lily's eyes. I had always felt that Snape loved Lily. What I found shocking was when Lily called him her BEST friend; I could see a friend, but BEST friend surprised me.
And I had always felt that Petunia's hostility was partly due to envy, but it was so sad to read that she had actually written to Dumbledore to be allowed to attend Hogwarts. And I was glad that Dudley finally came around, but I wish that epilog would have had something about the family. In fact, what I would really have liked to see is, Dudley showing up at the Hogwarts Express with his witch or wizard child, looking bemused but very proud :-)
I also tried to read the book slowly. In fact I tried to put off reading it at all for a while because I didn't want the story to end. But I reread Half-Blood Prince, and when I came to the end I just picked up Deathly Hallows. I was reading it slowly, took a few days to get through the first two thirds. Then found it impossible to put it down in the last third, and stayed up until 3 a.m. to finish it. All I can say is WOW. And finishing it doesn't ruin anything for me and I look forward to rereading the series several times again in the future.
The Bathilda Bagshot scenes were truly creepy. It made such perfect sense that Ron had trouble finding Harry and Hermione again, and that was the only reason he didn't return sooner. I didn't think Helena Bonham Carter was over the top; I think Bellatrix WAS over the top and HBC did a great job portraying that.
I REALLY wanted Harry to reconnect with Kreacher and was sorry he didn't. Dobby to the rescue was wonderful - and so awful when he died - but I would have liked to see Kreacher participate also. I loved Harry's line when Ron and Hermione finally connected - "Oi! There's a war on here!" and when Molly Weasley called Bellatrix a bitch I cheered!
Patricia Ryan, Children's Librarian Union City Library 510-745-1464 ext. 19
"Now, when I read constantly about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself." I, Asimov.
________________________________
From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu on behalf of Wendy Lanehart Sent: Sat 8/4/2007 10:29 AM To: 'ccbc-net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu' Subject: [CCBC-Net] Final Harry Potter
I'm surprised no one has posted on HPDH yet! I am quite the HP fan; I swore I'd take my time reading the last book as it was the last book, but read it in 2 days. I enjoyed it! Rowling says it's her favorite; I don't know if I feel that, but I don't think I actually do have a favorite. Although I enjoyed how each book became more complex and darker as Harry grew up, I also missed more of the fun and innocence in the first few in the series. Things I liked in the last book: how she tied up many loose ends but not everything (I was hoping Umbridge would go down in a big way!); the deathly hallows were very intriguing, both thematically and from a plot point of view (I was sure someone was going to die on Halloween!); the way Harry had to sacrifice himself but still lived was amazing; and it was very action-packed. I found the Elder Wand rather confusing; maybe after I listen to it (I have my copy of the audiobook on reserve!) it'll make more sense. I've read some criticism of the epilogue as corny. Etc., but I'm glad she did it. I still wondered if Harry ended up as an Auror and what everyone else was doing (I rather thought Hermione would be a professor).
I also saw the movie and thought it was as good as a movie condensation of an 896 page book can be! They kept in the most important plot elements but had to cut a lot of interesting sidelines. The young actress who played Luna was excellent; overall, I miss the depth of characterization you get in the books. There's so much to include, the movies end up giving very little characterization, except maybe Harry. You'd think they would've managed to include a glimpse of the locket horcrux, since we know that's going to be important later. The final battle at the Ministry of Magic was pretty amazing special effects; I liked the way they sort of turned into magical smoke as they swished around in battle. Helena Bonham Carter was very disappointing as a way-over-the-top Bellatrix; I guess all of those years portraying subdued types, she finally decided she could let loose. I just thought she was silly, versus scary. The actress who played Umbridge -- I know I've seen her in other things -- was excellent! Just as I'd imagined old Toadface! The power went off in the theater where we were watching just as Umbridge screeched at the Centaurs, and we had a tense ten or so minutes wondering if the movie was going to get going again -- it did. I don't care for Michael Gambon as DD nearly as much as I did with the previous actor who died (John Gielgud? I can't remember), and the scene at the end where DD explains things to Harry was sappy in the extreme ("Because I care about you Harry" -- I doubt he said it like that in the book, although there is no doubt he does care about Harry, to me, anyway).
I'm looking forward to sharing these books with my sons when they're older. I don't really think the later books are for children. More Young Adult. What's the consensus? I was abit shocked by Mrs. Weasley calling Bellatrix a B---- (in CAPITAL letters, too!:), but later liked it: she was protecting her child after Fred is killed. It felt very good to have Bellatrix destroyed. I figure if my son starts reading the Sorcerer's Stone when he's 10 (provided he doesn't read them too fast!), he can work his way up to the later, darker ones. I can't wait to read them out loud with him. By the way, if you've never listened to Jim Dale read any of the books, I HIGHLY recommend it. He is the BEST audiobooks' reader/actor I've ever heard, and he truly brings the books to life in a way that even the movies can't. Obviously, I could talk about HP all day, but I'll stop now.
Wendy Lanehart, Children's Librarian Central Rappahannock Regional Library Fredericksburg, Virginia
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Sat 04 Aug 2007 01:35:46 PM CDT
Date: Sat, 4 Aug 2007 11:35:46 -0700
Great comments! I agree with most of them, both about the book and the movie. I'm glad our theater didn't lose power, especially during such a dramatic scene - how frustrating. I'm amazed everyone lasted ten minutes!
Umbridge was not what I expected visually in the movie - the pictures in the books are much closer to the descriptions - but her performance was excellent. I thought it very interesting that contact with a horcrux has such a negative impact on a person, which helps explain just how vile Umbridge was. I don't remember if it was explained just how Umbridge got the locket however.
Sure the Snape memory scenes were convenient - as my son would say a deus ex machina - but I still liked it. And I did get that Snape looking into Harry's eyes was looking into Lily's eyes. I had always felt that Snape loved Lily. What I found shocking was when Lily called him her BEST friend; I could see a friend, but BEST friend surprised me.
And I had always felt that Petunia's hostility was partly due to envy, but it was so sad to read that she had actually written to Dumbledore to be allowed to attend Hogwarts. And I was glad that Dudley finally came around, but I wish that epilog would have had something about the family. In fact, what I would really have liked to see is, Dudley showing up at the Hogwarts Express with his witch or wizard child, looking bemused but very proud :-)
I also tried to read the book slowly. In fact I tried to put off reading it at all for a while because I didn't want the story to end. But I reread Half-Blood Prince, and when I came to the end I just picked up Deathly Hallows. I was reading it slowly, took a few days to get through the first two thirds. Then found it impossible to put it down in the last third, and stayed up until 3 a.m. to finish it. All I can say is WOW. And finishing it doesn't ruin anything for me and I look forward to rereading the series several times again in the future.
The Bathilda Bagshot scenes were truly creepy. It made such perfect sense that Ron had trouble finding Harry and Hermione again, and that was the only reason he didn't return sooner. I didn't think Helena Bonham Carter was over the top; I think Bellatrix WAS over the top and HBC did a great job portraying that.
I REALLY wanted Harry to reconnect with Kreacher and was sorry he didn't. Dobby to the rescue was wonderful - and so awful when he died - but I would have liked to see Kreacher participate also. I loved Harry's line when Ron and Hermione finally connected - "Oi! There's a war on here!" and when Molly Weasley called Bellatrix a bitch I cheered!
Patricia Ryan, Children's Librarian Union City Library 510-745-1464 ext. 19
"Now, when I read constantly about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself." I, Asimov.
________________________________
From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu on behalf of Wendy Lanehart Sent: Sat 8/4/2007 10:29 AM To: 'ccbc-net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu' Subject: [CCBC-Net] Final Harry Potter
I'm surprised no one has posted on HPDH yet! I am quite the HP fan; I swore I'd take my time reading the last book as it was the last book, but read it in 2 days. I enjoyed it! Rowling says it's her favorite; I don't know if I feel that, but I don't think I actually do have a favorite. Although I enjoyed how each book became more complex and darker as Harry grew up, I also missed more of the fun and innocence in the first few in the series. Things I liked in the last book: how she tied up many loose ends but not everything (I was hoping Umbridge would go down in a big way!); the deathly hallows were very intriguing, both thematically and from a plot point of view (I was sure someone was going to die on Halloween!); the way Harry had to sacrifice himself but still lived was amazing; and it was very action-packed. I found the Elder Wand rather confusing; maybe after I listen to it (I have my copy of the audiobook on reserve!) it'll make more sense. I've read some criticism of the epilogue as corny. Etc., but I'm glad she did it. I still wondered if Harry ended up as an Auror and what everyone else was doing (I rather thought Hermione would be a professor).
I also saw the movie and thought it was as good as a movie condensation of an 896 page book can be! They kept in the most important plot elements but had to cut a lot of interesting sidelines. The young actress who played Luna was excellent; overall, I miss the depth of characterization you get in the books. There's so much to include, the movies end up giving very little characterization, except maybe Harry. You'd think they would've managed to include a glimpse of the locket horcrux, since we know that's going to be important later. The final battle at the Ministry of Magic was pretty amazing special effects; I liked the way they sort of turned into magical smoke as they swished around in battle. Helena Bonham Carter was very disappointing as a way-over-the-top Bellatrix; I guess all of those years portraying subdued types, she finally decided she could let loose. I just thought she was silly, versus scary. The actress who played Umbridge -- I know I've seen her in other things -- was excellent! Just as I'd imagined old Toadface! The power went off in the theater where we were watching just as Umbridge screeched at the Centaurs, and we had a tense ten or so minutes wondering if the movie was going to get going again -- it did. I don't care for Michael Gambon as DD nearly as much as I did with the previous actor who died (John Gielgud? I can't remember), and the scene at the end where DD explains things to Harry was sappy in the extreme ("Because I care about you Harry" -- I doubt he said it like that in the book, although there is no doubt he does care about Harry, to me, anyway).
I'm looking forward to sharing these books with my sons when they're older. I don't really think the later books are for children. More Young Adult. What's the consensus? I was abit shocked by Mrs. Weasley calling Bellatrix a B---- (in CAPITAL letters, too!:), but later liked it: she was protecting her child after Fred is killed. It felt very good to have Bellatrix destroyed. I figure if my son starts reading the Sorcerer's Stone when he's 10 (provided he doesn't read them too fast!), he can work his way up to the later, darker ones. I can't wait to read them out loud with him. By the way, if you've never listened to Jim Dale read any of the books, I HIGHLY recommend it. He is the BEST audiobooks' reader/actor I've ever heard, and he truly brings the books to life in a way that even the movies can't. Obviously, I could talk about HP all day, but I'll stop now.
Wendy Lanehart, Children's Librarian Central Rappahannock Regional Library Fredericksburg, Virginia
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Sat 04 Aug 2007 01:35:46 PM CDT
