Glenden BrownHP7
Friday night I volunteered with Crossroads Urban Center to work the food drive at the main Library’s Midnight Muggle Madness Harry Potter release party. There were entire families that arrived in costume (including one man dressed as Viktor Krum). I was struck by a number of families that were obviously dirt poor and for whom coming to the party was a sacrifice - mom and/or dad were in work clothes or were taking the night off. But they brought their kids in last Halloween’s Harry Potter cape and glasses and they waited in line to get sorted into a house and went to chess game in the courtyard and they went to the various “Hogwarts” experiences - care and feeding of magical creatures and spell casting and what not. And before it was time for the book to be released, they took their kids home because it was ‘bed time’.
The food drive was strangely successful - we got a number of boxes of food and a large quantity of cash. Many folks who forgot to bring canned goods gave money. We gave out something like 1500 “Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare” buttons (SPEW).
The Main Library knocked this one out of the ballpark - each floor was a different house, many staff members were in costume - one staff member was dressed as Snape and did a damned convincing job of it. The library was decorated and the event was extremely well thought out and planned. This event was a great example of how libraries can serve a community centers providing equal access to all citizens and residents.
Toward the end of the of the night, the lines for buying the book began to form - Sam Weller’s and the Library book store were selling copies - the folks who had prepaid got to go first, followed by everyone else. I’m told the library book store sold out. At Midnight, the lights went out - plunging the four story atrium into darkness - there was a cheer and then the lights in the atrium flickered back to life and the book sales began - with screams and cheers and excitement.
Here’s my take on the book - read at your own risk since I won’t make any promises about spoilers.
A librarian friend sent me the Harry Potter and the Socrcerer’s Stone about a month before the second book was released. She wrote a note - “This is going to be massive!” - and said it was one of the better children’s books she’d read in a long time. I was hooked. I have all seven books. I haven’t seen the fifth movie - the fifth book was my least favorite.
So here’s my take on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - again, I’ll do my best to be spoiler free.
HP7 is a good wrapup for the series - the major plot line is resolved and the fates of the major characters are at long last revealed. JK Rowling obviously knows her English lit - after some 4000 pages total, she reveals the characters final “fate” in a Middlemarch-esque epilogue that is simultaneously fulfilling and frustrating - I wanted to know more but I suspect I’m the minority - I want to know the complete fates of a number of a minor characters as well as more details about the major characters.
HP7 is both too long and too short - I know that sounds weird but follow me if you can. The middle section of the book drags on; a patient and thorough editing could have tightened it up quite a bit - creating more room for Rowling to delve into some of the characters she’s drawn so lovingly. I for one want more of Viktor Krum who plays a key role in the book but then vanishes from its pages. I want to know more about the house elves and how the wizarding world cleans up after the events of The Deathly Hallows. A good patient editing - tightening passages and entire chapters - could have given space to explore those characters and questions. I wanted both more information and less; Rowling has drawn many of her supporting characters extremely well - and their fates are lost in the shuffle and I want to know what happened to them.
In terms of tone and pacing, book seven is closest to book four, The Goblet of Fire. There are long stretches of the book with little action punctuated by over the top fight scenes. Character-wise, I was frustrated by the lack of the development - Hermione, Ron and Harry seem to grow very little over the course of the book and for the most part, Harry comes across as a cipher with little motivation and few plans of his own. At the end, Harry’s true characters is at last allowed to act, but it feels as if he’s been a puppet with his strings being pulled by a variety of characters around him. A good edit job could have helped with that.
Books one, two, and three in the series, however, remain my favorites. Go back and reread then now - after you finish book seven - and you’ll see why. They’re simply tighter - better written, better edited and better ploted. They remain for me the pinnacle of children’s lit - like A Wrinkle in Time or Bridge to Teribithia, they are located within the tradition of English language children’s literature, simultaneously expanding it and honoring it. They’re accessible, fresh, and in many ways, ideal reads for young readers. The last four books, however, with their length, body counts and overall thematic darkness are not as accessible for appropriate for young readers. Much of the humor and lightness of the first three books is lost in the final four - it’s as if she made bread with yeast then switched to baking powder. The product is still good but maybe not as ready for every taste.
My criticisms may be quibbles - in the broadest scope, the entire series is highly entertaining. The Deathly Hallows is a good book and good read - it resolves the major questions of the series and does so in an entertaining way.
I think JK Rowling is one of the best writers around in terms of the technical aspects of writing. Apparently minor ideas first introduced in book one come back to play a crucial role in book 7. Important events from earlier books take on new significance and some seemingly minor events become important in this book. Rowling is also a master of her craft - the writing itself is excellent. I read the entire seventh book in a day and a half - like all the books it is an easy read which is a good sign - you don’t have to reread to know what happened. And over seven books, JK Rowling delivered a coherent, pretty powerful and highly detailed account of one boy’s coming of age and facing the demons (literally) of the past.
