Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince--SPOILER ALERT!!!

me | July 17, 2005 | grellis

[grellis]

THIS THREAD IS INTENDED FOR READERS THAT HAVE COMPLETED THE BOOK! If you have not yet read the book, consider yourself warned: There will be spoilers on this thread.

For my fellow FReepers who have no intention of reading the book but would like to discuss the more controversial issues related to the work, I am asking you as politely as I can: DO NOT HIJACK THIS THREAD. We are all members of this forum and as such, it is not up to me to disallow anyone from participating in the discussion. That is why I am asking you--please do not hijack this thread. If you would like to discuss the more controversial aspects of the book, maybe you could start your own thread and ping us over there. If we are interested, we'll come.

[jdm]

Okay, but please.... NO SPOILERS!!!!!! :)

[grellis]

I have to refer back to the earlier thread, I have forgotten who else is finished reading it. Please feel free to ping other FReepers who may be interested in the discussion.

[tiredoflaundry]

Thanks for the "ping". I thought this book was great!

[mware]

Perhaps Rowlings is a FREEPER. On page 102 they show the grading system of Hogwarts.

The lowest grade you can get is a T for Troll

[jdm]

How long did it take to read the book? Just curious. I am a slow reader, so I usually don't read anything, expect for articles in Weekly Standard, National Review, listen to talk radio, etc.

How would you rate the book on a scale of 1 to 10?

[grellis]

So, who saw it coming??! I was close. I thought that the HBP would be Snape's child.

What do we know about the professors, really?

[tiredoflaundry]

omg Snape........ I'm still not sure ,argh!!!!!!!!

[jdm]

My goodness; you guys are FAST readers. The book has only been out for 44 hours!!!! Glad you can read that fast; it would take me a few months to get through a book.

[tiredoflaundry]

LOL.

[backinthefold]

omg Snape........ I'm still not sure ,argh!!!!!!!!

I am still shocked over that turn...

 

 

[grellis]

Altogether, I'd say 8 hours total. I had to read fast. My nearly 8-year old has read all of the books, but I insist on reading them first so I know ahead of time what he'll be exposed to and what we'll be discussing.

It's kind of tough for me to rate the book. Teenagers are portrayed accurately. Teenagers are, for lack of a better word, annoying. A conundrum. I found the use of the pensieve as a bit of a crutch for Rowling. Before each trip into the pensieve, I was reminded of how much I dislike "dream sequences" in literature and in movies or tv shows. They are, IMO, an all-too-convenient shortcut in story progression.

I like the set-up for the final book.

[tiredoflaundry]

I don't know..... DD & Snape argued...Did DD make Snape swear to carry it out???????? I'm not sure!

[Mr. K]

And when they said Hermoine was HIS SISTER~!!! who'da thunk it?

[grellis]

I am not convinced that Snape was doing anything other than what Dumbledore requested. I think Dumbledore was stalling Malfoy in the hope that anyone else would finish him off--he couldn't have wanted Malfoy to become a murderer. Before Snape killed him, he looked at Dumbledore with, what...repulsion and hatred? That might not have been directed at Dumbledore. Maybe Snape was raging at what he had to do. Then, when he really flipped out: "I AM NOT A COWARD!!!" Maybe he's not.

I hate to say it, but dang! I can't wait until the next book comes out!!!

[Gardener]

I thought D might be the one who died. I was kind of expecting it. I had no idea who the HBP might be. She kept pointing toward Voldemort but she had said it wasn't him. I didn't guess Snape at ALL until he told Harry!

Now. Is D really dead? She was pretty blatant with the fire and phoenix stuff at the burial and his familiar has been a phoenix, maybe with good reason, for a long time. But she could also have just put that stuff in there to fuel speculation until the last book comes out and make us want it more to see. Is Snape really bad? I haven't thought so all along, I've trusted that D was right about him. I know he truly hates Harry but I didn't think he was a minion of V anymore. Did he and D set this up so that Snape would be totally accepted by V and the Death Eaters? Notice he wouldn't let Harry cast any of the death spells. Was he still trying to be D's man? And who is R.A.B.? And D made sure that Harry was going to be allowed back at the Dursleys way back at the beginning, maybe because he knew he wouldn't be around to take care of it?

This one was so much more enjoyable for me than the last one. It had a lot more of the spirit of the first books.

[grellis]

And when they said Hermoine was HIS SISTER

ROTF!!!

[tiredoflaundry]

I hate to say it, but dang! I can't wait until the next book comes out!!!

I know I have a ton of new questions!!!!!

[Gardener]

All posting at the same time! Glad I'm not the only one who is wondering about the whole setup!

[grellis]

At least there was no allegory to any current event--at least, not that I picked up on. But then, I was reading pretty fast.