Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter ~ 759 Pages


"So does it say how to destroy Horcruxes in that book?"
"Yes," said Hermione, now turning the fragile pages as if examining rotting entrails, "because it warns Dark wizards how strong they have to make the enchantments on them. From all that I've read, what Harry did to Riddle's diary was one of the few really fool proof ways of destroying a Horcrux."
"What, stabbing it with a basilisk fang?" asked Harry.
"Oh well, lucky we've got such a large supply of basilisk fangs, then," said Ron. "I was wondering what we were going to do with them."

How do you blog your very life and soul? Okay I won't be that dramatic, but the harry Potter books were, in fact, my childhood. I can remember reading Harry Potter books as early as third grade. (Harry's birthday also happens to be the same week as mine, and however old he was in the book that had just come out, that's how old I was.) Can you blame me for forming such a strong attachment?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is book number seven, the last book in the series. I decided to read the whole book before the last movie came out. It's been very interesting (event though I did this before the last movie as well) to see how true the movie stayed, and yet how far it strayed. Little scenes that help you know the characters more had to be cut for time, small things that turn out to be huge the last half of the book were kind of left out, I'm wondering how they are going to make up for these things.

I definitely pity whoever had not read this book series. If you've only seen the movies, and love them, or even like them, or even endure them, you will love the books.

I always thought that the third book would be my favorite, that is, until the seventh one came out. It wraps up the series so perfectly, and I must admit that I cry every time I read the scene SPOILER ALERT where Harry is going to die, and he's talking to his parents, Lupin and Sirius.

This book is a freaking masterpiece. I've read it three times now, and I'm still not sick of it. It's also 759 pages, which brings my countdown past the halfway mark (finally) to 4,701.

Now I'm ready for the midnight premiere! Well, almost... I still need to get my costume together.

Read on,

Jamie

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Seeing Redd

Seeing Redd ~ 371 Pages


She let the book fall open in her hand. She Riffled through its pages from first to last with her imagination. To think that Alyss had been immortilized by some earth scribbler! She slammed the book shut. She tapped a long finger against its cover, under the author's name. "Find me this Lewis Carroll and bring him here!"

Why do I do things I say I'll never do?

Seeing Redd is the second book in the Looking Glass Wars Trilogy, and I said I wasn't going to read it. But I led myself to believe that I'd enjoy it a whole lot more now that I know the characters and there seems to be more conflict outside of just battles. Well, I was wrong. I thought I could finish this book at Lake Powell, but I found myself not even wanting to pick it up at all.

Since I was little, I've been going to Lake Powell, and usually, the Harry Potter Book would come out right before we left. Lake Powell had always been a place I find it easy to read. But this year, I didn't take a Harry Potter book like I always do. I took this book. And I'm upset I did.

This book is A LOT like the previous book. Lots of battles, not a lot of character development. It took me two weeks to even bring myself to finish it. Once again, I'm not sure why. It's not slow, it's not a bad plot, it's not even poorly written. I just have next to no patience reading it.

When I was at Lake Powell, one of the girls we were boating with saw I was reading Seeing Redd, and she pretty much said the exact same thing. No patience. Even she couldn't say why exactly. I still stick to my proposal that it might be that the characters are great but they are always fighting, so I never get to know anything about them other than what side they are fighting for and how well they fight in battle. I just didn't get to love the characters like I wanted to.

It took so long for me to get into this book that it's the only one I have to blog for now, and find myself slightly behind schedule. Luckily I'm starting the 7th Harry Potter today.

So with these 371 pages behind me, I have 5,460 pages to go. Time to get crackin.

Read on,

Jamie