Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Mood:  quizzical
Topic: Books
I know it's not just me, and I wonder how many other people were disappointed by the newest book in the series -- especially after the richness of detail, character, and language in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I found it thin and undeveloped and wonder if there were any intentional reason for this or if it was caused by Rowling's marriage, pregnancy, and birth of a new child taking her focus away from the series, if she's tired of the series and in a rush to finish, or if, as so many people are now aware that there is a hidden code in the books that helps to predict the outcome, she is now depending on Harry Potter Sleuths to fill in the details because the books are read so carefully and discussed in groups and with her online. After waiting for the book and learning to sleuth clues myself, rereading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and still rereading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, I was actually appalled at the quality of the latest book -- beginning with a number of grammatical and spelling errors in the first several chapters (thankfully, they stopped). The errors I attributed to Scholastic being in such a rush to get it out on time that a sloppy job was done. The rest of the book I can find no explanation for -- other than being tired of the series and busy with family affairs, as the series was begun during a period when she had fewer demands on her time and on perhaps her reliance on readers to furnish details. It was especially surprising after the quality of the last book -- this does happen, you know, but somehow I expected better -- and the rising levels of literary quality with the growth of Harry through the series. In the meantime, I have been amusing myself with the reread of OOP and pondering why a Badger is the totem symbol for Hufflepuff, reading Prince Caspian (Book II, Chronicles of Narnia), because I saw a badger in it, and looking for my copy of the Wind in the Willows, both of which "any literate British schoolchild" would have read, as someone on the Harry Potter for Adults yahoo group advised. With the appearance of this book, I am doubting even more that the series is all that dense in hidden clues as an interactive game for readers. I was in some doubt before, considering that readers have found far more richness in the books than was originally planned. They will stand the test of time, I am sure, and I wonder if the same fascination with finding hidden clues, paying attention to page and chapter structure to divine the future of Harry Potter and Hogwarts. I imagine I will finally get around to reading The Lord of the Rings after breaking down to watch the first film on television not so long ago. I had never been able to muddle through The Hobbit (and wonder if I will ever be able to).