"only You can make every new day seem so new" ~Five Iron Frenzy

Monday, May 30, 2011

The Deathly Hallows

SPOILER ALERT:
If you do not know how Harry Potter ends and wish it to remain a secret until you see the last movie and/or read the books - do not procede.

It's official.  I have finished reading the entire Harry Potter series.  And I must say - I have a new favorite fantasy series ... well, one of my favorites.  It is trumping The Wicked Years, taking third place below Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia.  Don't feel bad for it only getting third place though - nothing will EVER trump my love of JRR Tolkien's Middle Earth, and I've been reading about CS Lewis' Narnia since I was a child.  3rd is actually a very prodigious place for Harry Potter to receive - and 3 is my favorite number...

Anyway ... loved the ending of the story.  My biggest fear was that Harry was going to be killed off at the end - a mutual death for him and Voldemort - and I thought my fears were coming true when Harry found out that he needed to accept his death - and was SO relieved when he survived.

Honestly, from the moment he found out that he needed to die in order for Voldemort to die, until the moment when he was "killed" - I was a mess.  My eyes were so full of tears, I could barely read.  When he was walking through the castle and over the grounds - deciding not to stop and see Hermione, Ron, and Ginny - and when he stopped to tell Neville that Nagini needed to be killed - I thought I was going to have to stop reading for a minute to let myself sob like a child before continuing.

I love that Narcissa Malfoy had that redeeming moment - her love for her son overcoming her devotion to "the Dark Lord." I love that Neville pulled Gryffindor's sword out of the hat ("something only a true Gryffindor could do") - and that he was brave enough, when left to his own devices, to rally everyone together in revolt in the first place.  I love that Mrs. Weasley killed Beatrix in defense of her daughter, screaming "not my daughter, you b****!"  I love that Percy came back to his family.  I love that all those students and former students came back to Hogwarts to help rebel against Voldemort - all of Harry's quidditch teammates, all the Weasleys, and all the characters we knew.  I love that Kreacher was leading the house elves to fight.

True, I hated it when Hermione was being tortured in the Malfoy Manor.  I cried when Dobby died.  I sobbed when Fred died (if you remember from one of my first posts - the Weasley twins were one of my favorite characters).  I sobbed again when Lupin and Tonks died.

On the other hand, I did want to mention something about the characters, since the last time I did, I hadn't even finished the second book.

Harry - he gets frustrating when he's so edgy and angsty, but he makes up for it in the end.
Ron - not my favorite character, but I can relate to him because he doesn't have a whole lot of self-confidence, yet finds it in himself to return to Harry and rescue him and the sword from the pool.
Hermione - One of my favorite characters, I don't know many girls who wouldn't be able to relate to her.
Ginny - probably my favorite character.  I could relate to her most from the beginning, being a youngest child myself.  I love when she received more of a role in the story and her character developed more.  I confess it was mainly for her sake that I wanted Harry to live - they HAD to end up together.
The twins - I love their incontrovertible sense of humor - the fact that Fred was once again mocking Percy right before he died.  I love that their business was a success.
Neville - again, loved that he stepped up and revolted so fearlessly and that he was the one who killed Nagini.
Luna - love her character, she brings a lovely dynamic to the group.
Lupin - loved his character.  That's all, really.
Dumbledore - loved his wisdom and knowledge - loved even more that he wasn't perfect - that he made mistakes just like everyone else.
Severus Snape - after knowing the truth about him, I don't dislike him anymore - but he's still a little frustrating - the way he was always assuming the worst in Harry.
Minerva McGonegall - my favorite professor.
and lastly ... and this time, definitely leastly:
Professor Umbridge - I cannot close without communicating how much I thoroughly despised her character.  Until I read Order of the Phoenix, I didn't think it was possible to hate a fictional character so much.

Anyway, though I am finished with the books, I don't think those are my last thoughts on them, so I probably will do one more post after I've had some time to think them over.

Much Love to All.

1 comment:

  1. I just had to comment and say that from the moment I finished this book, I knew that all the last movie will need in order for me to love it is Mrs. Weasley's line.

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