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A review by samsegal3
ハリー・ポッターと謎のプリンス by J.K. Rowling
4.0
I was really slow in my re-read of this book, mostly due to taking a very long break. The book has quite a slow build, as with most in this series, where the beginning takes a bit to get going. And my enthusiasm for it just wasn't there at the start. But once I got determined to finally pick this book back up and finish it, things went better.
I do think, like book five, this one feels filler-y in areas too. There were definitely lulls in this book that were draining to get through, but it does reach quite a wild ending, that I know at the time, made shockwaves across us fans. The statement was EVERYWHERE, truly a cultural phenomenon. It blew our minds back then, haha.
While the payoff of a solid ending made me forget a lot of the stuff in this book I didn't like, I don't think I felt this addition is as strong as book five. I find myself remembering enjoying that one more. I think I just had too many minor nit-picks with this one. Overall it's a decent book though. Regardless, just one last re-read to go, and I'll be done.
If you are concerned about supporting JK Rowling but still want to read the series, I guarantee most libraries have copies, and you'll likely be able to find them used for purchase as well. If you're looking for Japanese copies, Ebay, BookOff, Mandarake, or used books on Amazon are nice places to start searching.
--
This review is more from the perspective of reading it in Japanese though, so here are my thoughts on that:
You can check my reviews of books 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 for other info on reading in Japanese. I would generally classify this series as upper N3 at minimum, though there is difficulty creep that gets easily into N2+.
Here are my stats, as usual:
上
Beginning: 2.88 minutes per page
Middle: 2.33 minutes per page
End: 2.05 minutes per page
下
Beginning: (skipped timing)
Middle: 1.88 minutes per page
End: 1.86 minutes per page for second to last chapter, 2.13 for the insanely text heavy last chapter.
I ended the last book at around 1.9 minutes per page, so it's clear it took me a bit to get used to reading these books again. BUT I reached a new speed record, getting into the 1.80s now, which is exciting. If I were to guesstimate, I think a native speaker would read closer to about one minute per page, assuming 500 char/minute.
I had thankfully timed the second to last chapter, which I feel is a more accurate representation of my average speed, as the last chapter of this book was so word heavy, it feels unfair to use that as my actual speed, as it doesn't match the average characters per page from the rest of the series.
As I had experienced a 'reset' of sorts in regards to my speed, I was prepared to see that going into this book. I was still sad it was almost three minutes, but I can't complain with where I ended up. :) I set my goal in the last book to get below two minutes, and I accomplished that! It'd be super cool to see maybe 1.5 minutes per page by the end of the next book ;) But honestly just finishing all of these books will be an accomplishment in and of itself, haha.
I'll be taking another break before reading the last book. I might not actually start it until next year, we'll see, haha. But man, will be nice to finally close these books for good!
I do think, like book five, this one feels filler-y in areas too. There were definitely lulls in this book that were draining to get through, but it does reach quite a wild ending, that I know at the time, made shockwaves across us fans. The statement
Spoiler
Snape killed Dumbledore.While the payoff of a solid ending made me forget a lot of the stuff in this book I didn't like, I don't think I felt this addition is as strong as book five. I find myself remembering enjoying that one more. I think I just had too many minor nit-picks with this one. Overall it's a decent book though. Regardless, just one last re-read to go, and I'll be done.
If you are concerned about supporting JK Rowling but still want to read the series, I guarantee most libraries have copies, and you'll likely be able to find them used for purchase as well. If you're looking for Japanese copies, Ebay, BookOff, Mandarake, or used books on Amazon are nice places to start searching.
--
This review is more from the perspective of reading it in Japanese though, so here are my thoughts on that:
You can check my reviews of books 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 for other info on reading in Japanese. I would generally classify this series as upper N3 at minimum, though there is difficulty creep that gets easily into N2+.
Here are my stats, as usual:
上
Beginning: 2.88 minutes per page
Middle: 2.33 minutes per page
End: 2.05 minutes per page
下
Beginning: (skipped timing)
Middle: 1.88 minutes per page
End: 1.86 minutes per page for second to last chapter, 2.13 for the insanely text heavy last chapter.
I ended the last book at around 1.9 minutes per page, so it's clear it took me a bit to get used to reading these books again. BUT I reached a new speed record, getting into the 1.80s now, which is exciting. If I were to guesstimate, I think a native speaker would read closer to about one minute per page, assuming 500 char/minute.
I had thankfully timed the second to last chapter, which I feel is a more accurate representation of my average speed, as the last chapter of this book was so word heavy, it feels unfair to use that as my actual speed, as it doesn't match the average characters per page from the rest of the series.
As I had experienced a 'reset' of sorts in regards to my speed, I was prepared to see that going into this book. I was still sad it was almost three minutes, but I can't complain with where I ended up. :) I set my goal in the last book to get below two minutes, and I accomplished that! It'd be super cool to see maybe 1.5 minutes per page by the end of the next book ;) But honestly just finishing all of these books will be an accomplishment in and of itself, haha.
I'll be taking another break before reading the last book. I might not actually start it until next year, we'll see, haha. But man, will be nice to finally close these books for good!