A New Phase

Got the final book last Saturday i.e. the release day. But, I didn’t have to queue up like some people did though as I live in a small city. I went to the book store in the afternoon and picked up a copy; god I love living in a small city Finished reading the book on Sunday evening. I have to say it’s a great ending to the story.

Harry, Hermione & Ron go on to fulfill the task Dumbledore left them i.e. to find and destroy the horcruxes; items that hold a fragment of Voldermort’s soul. Voldermort can’t die unless every horcrux is destroyed. The journey is tough as they don’t have a plan and none has any idea where the horcruxes are. Dumbledore left them each an item on his will to aid them in their journey. Those items help them to discover the existence of the Deathly Hallow which consists of three magical items; a wand, a resurrection stone and a invisible cloak. Each of which is the best in its class. Harry now has to decide his priority; find horcruxes or the hallows first. Needless to say, they succeed in their journey. As to which items did Harry prioritise, you have to find it our your own

Harry Potter is highly successful due to its story which progresses nicely. In the earlier books the story was lighter and more about ‘wow magic exists’ as Harry himself was really young. It then becomes darker as Harry grows older and the story captures nicely the ‘insecurity’ of teenagers. Also, the plot becomes more complicated as Harry begins to understand more the situation he has to deal with.

A top notch set of characters sets Harry Potter apart from other series. Harry himself is a flawed hero. He’s far from an exemplary student and he’s gotten through so far due to luck, bravery (or recklessness) as well as the help of his friends. Out of all characters in Harry Potter, Severus Snape is my favourite. His love to Harry’s mother is so pure that he dedicates his life to protect the child of the only woman he loves. He might think of Harry as the child he might have had things worked out with Harry’s mom. His bravery is unquestionable; he has to play both Voldermort and Dumbledore side convincingly. In the process, he willingly take the accusations and blames other make towards him. In a nutshell, he is the definition of ‘gray’ character.

I reckon the most profound impact of the series is that it brings back joy to reading especially to the younger readers. Make no mistake Harry Potter books are not typical children books. The latest volume has 607 of solid pages without any picture in it. Unless I’m very wrong, most kids nowadays prefer to spend time on the Internet; social networking site, surfing web sites, chatting, etc. It’s fair to say that reading is not on top of their list. Harry Potter changes that and hopefully, there will be other books that will have similar impacts