Moving along...
Jul. 19th, 2005 08:43 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gwendolyngraceMy UK copy of HBP was waiting for me last night, and with it, my last excuse to hold off reading dissolved.
I read for about 4 hours and I'm through Chapter 14. And yes, so far, I'm liking it overall, except of course for some unfortunate choices, more eyeroll worthy than anything else.
Had an early meeting this morning and much to do today, so I'm hoping 4:30 comes quickly, kaythanxbye.
Yes, Chapters One and Two were complete set-up chapters. I find it interesting that in her continuing quest to widen the circle of influence each book has, she has also had to introduce more material that is "external" to Harry's POV. Previously, there has only been one entire chapter that was from a POV other than Harry's, and one chapter that starts out from a different POV, but that shifts to Harry's at the end (though I maintain that up until Frank goes into the Riddle House, Harry is *not* aware of any of the action).
I'm keeping a bit of a tally of the things I "got right," though I'm not really certain at this junture what percentage of "right" is just careful reading, what portion is lucky guess, and what portion is simply right because it was the obvious, and yes once again, easy, choice.
But, the salient "right" things so far are:
- Snape? Not rolling in the dough. And thanks, JK, for finding a way to include lots of EXPOSITION on the subject of "Why didn't Voldemort know because of Quirrell/Harry/Graveyard/etc.?" (Big huge "DUH!" from this corner.)
- Pensieve used as a tool to show us past actions which reflect on the present. Okay, Dumbledore showed memories to Hermione in HMSS, but it's just too useful a tool to pass up.
- Narcissa. I'm just saying. Supports the Dark Arts and apparently loves her husband and son. Yeah, maybe no Mrs Robinson, but she hasn't really had the opportunity (and well, no, I never really thought that, it was just fun to make Ryan squirm in HMSS) - but did I detect a little bit of "feminine wiles" trying to convince Snape to help? I think I did.
There's a couple more, but they're home on my notepad.
Does it strike anyone else that, as with OoP, she's throwing in little details just to answer more of the endless trivia questions people inundate her with through chats, interviews, and the website? It just seems like every little scrap of colour commentary in the book is a response to some t00by question about *someone* or *something* that has been speculated and agonised over by the fans....
Though I like Luna. She was responsible for my first Laugh Out Loud moment in the book.
Can I say that I like the idea from whomever suggested it that Sirius's will is his *old* will, drafted before he knew Remus wasn't the spy, and that he never got around to changing it in the two years after he escaped Azkaban? I like that possibility better than thinking Remus was cut out of it altogether. ;^D
Oh, and Ollivander's disappearance? Fortescue? Weh. I hoped they'd wind up being a bit more important - I knew they were on the "good" side. Maybe we'll see them by the end of the book. I liked Amelia Bones, too. I feel bad for Kingsley, stuck on guard detail on Downing Street - I like Kingsley. Ach, vell.
I'm glad to see students being pulled from class due to dead parents. I always figured that was a common occurrence in VWI, and so it's good to see the pattern returning.
Predictions at this juncture (based on the spoilers I already know):
- Draco's task is to try to kill Dumbledore; Snape, due to the "unbreakable vow" will have to see the plan through. (However, I'm also assuming that Snape and Dumbledore are both prepared for this and have agreed that it has to be done.)
- Dumbledore will buy it before we've found out all the information he needs to impart to Harry through the Pensieve. (Um, yeah, pretty obvious, but hey.)
Thoughts and musings and other hopes:
- HBP is James? I'm not sure about this yet, or whether this is simply what we're supposed to believe at this point. One thought is that Slughorn himself is the prince and gave Harry the book deliberately to give him an edge. No firm answers on this yet, only musing. Perhaps it's too early and we don't have all the clues yet.
- Fleur - we're obviously not supposed to like her, so I'm hoping (against hope) that Bill and Fleur will break the heck up and he'll come to his senses. (I also hope that something similar happens to Tonks and her as-yet unrequited love interest (about whom I scream nonono!) and that Tonks and Bill get together. Yeah, I know, wishful thinking, but they're a much better-suited couple, IMO. Maybe next book, if not this one?)
- Harry, Harry, Harry. Oh, Ron! Man, this shipping crap makes a perfectly good story rather tedious. OBHWF? This is one of those theories that I've always suspected would turn out right, but I just hoped would be wrong. I don't see either couple as successful in the long run, but then again, that's what being 16 is all about, I suppose.
Eh, I guess that's it.
So, yeah, not as horrible as I feared, but then, we're not done yet, either.
I read for about 4 hours and I'm through Chapter 14. And yes, so far, I'm liking it overall, except of course for some unfortunate choices, more eyeroll worthy than anything else.
Had an early meeting this morning and much to do today, so I'm hoping 4:30 comes quickly, kaythanxbye.
Yes, Chapters One and Two were complete set-up chapters. I find it interesting that in her continuing quest to widen the circle of influence each book has, she has also had to introduce more material that is "external" to Harry's POV. Previously, there has only been one entire chapter that was from a POV other than Harry's, and one chapter that starts out from a different POV, but that shifts to Harry's at the end (though I maintain that up until Frank goes into the Riddle House, Harry is *not* aware of any of the action).
I'm keeping a bit of a tally of the things I "got right," though I'm not really certain at this junture what percentage of "right" is just careful reading, what portion is lucky guess, and what portion is simply right because it was the obvious, and yes once again, easy, choice.
But, the salient "right" things so far are:
- Snape? Not rolling in the dough. And thanks, JK, for finding a way to include lots of EXPOSITION on the subject of "Why didn't Voldemort know because of Quirrell/Harry/Graveyard/etc.?" (Big huge "DUH!" from this corner.)
- Pensieve used as a tool to show us past actions which reflect on the present. Okay, Dumbledore showed memories to Hermione in HMSS, but it's just too useful a tool to pass up.
- Narcissa. I'm just saying. Supports the Dark Arts and apparently loves her husband and son. Yeah, maybe no Mrs Robinson, but she hasn't really had the opportunity (and well, no, I never really thought that, it was just fun to make Ryan squirm in HMSS) - but did I detect a little bit of "feminine wiles" trying to convince Snape to help? I think I did.
There's a couple more, but they're home on my notepad.
Does it strike anyone else that, as with OoP, she's throwing in little details just to answer more of the endless trivia questions people inundate her with through chats, interviews, and the website? It just seems like every little scrap of colour commentary in the book is a response to some t00by question about *someone* or *something* that has been speculated and agonised over by the fans....
Though I like Luna. She was responsible for my first Laugh Out Loud moment in the book.
Can I say that I like the idea from whomever suggested it that Sirius's will is his *old* will, drafted before he knew Remus wasn't the spy, and that he never got around to changing it in the two years after he escaped Azkaban? I like that possibility better than thinking Remus was cut out of it altogether. ;^D
Oh, and Ollivander's disappearance? Fortescue? Weh. I hoped they'd wind up being a bit more important - I knew they were on the "good" side. Maybe we'll see them by the end of the book. I liked Amelia Bones, too. I feel bad for Kingsley, stuck on guard detail on Downing Street - I like Kingsley. Ach, vell.
I'm glad to see students being pulled from class due to dead parents. I always figured that was a common occurrence in VWI, and so it's good to see the pattern returning.
Predictions at this juncture (based on the spoilers I already know):
- Draco's task is to try to kill Dumbledore; Snape, due to the "unbreakable vow" will have to see the plan through. (However, I'm also assuming that Snape and Dumbledore are both prepared for this and have agreed that it has to be done.)
- Dumbledore will buy it before we've found out all the information he needs to impart to Harry through the Pensieve. (Um, yeah, pretty obvious, but hey.)
Thoughts and musings and other hopes:
- HBP is James? I'm not sure about this yet, or whether this is simply what we're supposed to believe at this point. One thought is that Slughorn himself is the prince and gave Harry the book deliberately to give him an edge. No firm answers on this yet, only musing. Perhaps it's too early and we don't have all the clues yet.
- Fleur - we're obviously not supposed to like her, so I'm hoping (against hope) that Bill and Fleur will break the heck up and he'll come to his senses. (I also hope that something similar happens to Tonks and her as-yet unrequited love interest (about whom I scream nonono!) and that Tonks and Bill get together. Yeah, I know, wishful thinking, but they're a much better-suited couple, IMO. Maybe next book, if not this one?)
- Harry, Harry, Harry. Oh, Ron! Man, this shipping crap makes a perfectly good story rather tedious. OBHWF? This is one of those theories that I've always suspected would turn out right, but I just hoped would be wrong. I don't see either couple as successful in the long run, but then again, that's what being 16 is all about, I suppose.
Eh, I guess that's it.
So, yeah, not as horrible as I feared, but then, we're not done yet, either.
