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The long-awaited Harry Potter is finally out,
after 3 years of waiting. The question is: does it really live up to
the reader's expectations? At the end of
Harry Potter and the
Goblet of Fire, Harry is kidnapped by Voldemort who tries
but fails to kill him, though the encounter costs the life of
Cedric Diggory, Harry's schoolmate and competitor at the Triwizard
tournament.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix begins
with Harry spending a miserable summer at the Dursleys, where dull
days alternate with nightmarish nights, as he is wondering why the news of Voldemort's comeback is not official yet. Nothing hints to it
in the Daily
Prophet nor in Ron's, Hermione's or Sirius's letters... When
Harry fends off an unexpected magical attack in the neighborhood of
Privet Drive, he learns that defending himself and his cousin
Dudsley might cost him expulsion from Hogwarts and the confiscation of
his wand. A hearing at the Ministry of magic decides his fate...
Fortunately, Harry is soon reunited with his
friends, but when the school year begins, he realizes that with
the appointment of a new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, Mrs. Umbridge, things could change forever, and for the worst, within the
once safe walls of Hogwarts. It will be for Harry to find out what awaits
him during his fifth year at Hogwarts, with the prospect of the O.W.L
exams at the end of the year. He will also have to discover why no word is out yet
about Voldemort, and to unveil what he is up to...
On the positive note, the year at Hogwarts is
an eventful one, with the worst Defense against the Arts Teacher
ever. Both Ron Weasley and Neville Longbottom reserve the reader some surprises. The Weasley twins create havoc at school and there are some
surprising changes
occurring amongst the staff of teachers!
Unfortunately, the plot of Harry Potter and
the Order of the Phoenix could have easily been edited to fit in
the first chapters of Rowling's next book. We have become used to
very complex plots with no loose end, elegant mysteries with
revelations surprising even to adults. Here, some far-fetched and
artificial impediments delay a revelation that is no real surprise
to the reader for about 800 pages.
The character of Harry himself suffers some
very unpleasant changes. He becomes very self-centered, it is all
about him, him, him: up until a point, he couldn't be less concerned
with what happens in his entourage. He is also very self-pitying and
bad-tempered. However, I think Rowling did it on purpose: she wanted
him to evolve and experience a difficult transitional time during
his teenage years. What we witness here is a transitional novel and
a character experiencing a troubled phase. My guess is that Rowling has
everything planned until the end and had a hard time filling the interval
between Voldemort's comeback and the doubtlessly magnificent
conclusion of her books. She also wanted to show the human flaws of
the various main protagonists, as opposed to Voldemort's unflinching
inhumanity...
Even though this is my least favorite Harry
Potter book, it is still a very good read, a pleasant time with characters
that have become part of our imaginary...
Rating: 
© Discussing Books, 06/26/2003 |
Critiques
