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A review by gapagrin
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
5.0
This is the first Harry Potter book that I remember having to wait for. It felt like forever, but it was worth it. It's always been one of my favourites in the series. I loved reading about Harry's parents and how they died, learning more about Voldemort's initial rise to power. The fight against Voldemort wasn't won by Harry the day Voldemort killed his parents and it had been going on for a long time before that. Harry Potter isn't an isolated champion against Voldemort, but part of a larger movement.
One thing that struck me in this book was just how lucky Harry Potter truly is. What are the chances of being in the perfect place at the perfect time to overhear all of the important conversations that he does? You'd think at least once he'd eavesdrop on a conversation about who forgot their toothbrush or the stupid essay a student turned in or something equally mundane. Instead, he overhears vital information about how Sirius Black escaped prison to come after him and then about how he's not only the person who betrayed Harry's parents but also his godfather. It's like the book equivalent of a TV or film character turning on the TV to exactly the right channel at exactly the right time to watch the relevant news or show.
I enjoyed how much more of the wizarding world we got to see in Prisoner of Azkaban. We learn about Azkaban, Harry spends more time in Diagon Alley and has the freedom to wander, there's the Knight Bus, which can take you anywhere not crossing water, and Hogsmeade. The wizarding world is no longer limited to Hogwarts and Diagon Alley or to students and teachers. For the first time, it's the wizarding world, not just wizard school. The world of Harry Potter has become a bigger place, and not just in terms of size - we see an expanded cast of characters who have connections to each other independent of Harry himself.
Then there's the time travel. It's difficult to do this well - most end up with a paradox resulting in the time traveller becoming their own reason for travelling back in time in the first place, which shouldn't have happened because the first time through the timeline, they weren't there. Rowling avoids this - everything that is done by the time travellers affects the present and the future without being the reason for the trip back in time in the first place.
I also enjoyed how everyone struggled with their own limitations in this book as well - Hermione took on far too much coursework and found herself going slightly mad, Harry had his own past experiences coming back to haunt him in the worst possible way with the Dementors, and Ron's pride strained his friendship with Hermione over the pet rat he never liked very much anyway. All of the major characters grew a lot in this book as their world expanded and got darker.
One thing that struck me in this book was just how lucky Harry Potter truly is. What are the chances of being in the perfect place at the perfect time to overhear all of the important conversations that he does? You'd think at least once he'd eavesdrop on a conversation about who forgot their toothbrush or the stupid essay a student turned in or something equally mundane. Instead, he overhears vital information about how Sirius Black escaped prison to come after him and then about how he's not only the person who betrayed Harry's parents but also his godfather. It's like the book equivalent of a TV or film character turning on the TV to exactly the right channel at exactly the right time to watch the relevant news or show.
I enjoyed how much more of the wizarding world we got to see in Prisoner of Azkaban. We learn about Azkaban, Harry spends more time in Diagon Alley and has the freedom to wander, there's the Knight Bus, which can take you anywhere not crossing water, and Hogsmeade. The wizarding world is no longer limited to Hogwarts and Diagon Alley or to students and teachers. For the first time, it's the wizarding world, not just wizard school. The world of Harry Potter has become a bigger place, and not just in terms of size - we see an expanded cast of characters who have connections to each other independent of Harry himself.
Then there's the time travel. It's difficult to do this well - most end up with a paradox resulting in the time traveller becoming their own reason for travelling back in time in the first place, which shouldn't have happened because the first time through the timeline, they weren't there. Rowling avoids this - everything that is done by the time travellers affects the present and the future without being the reason for the trip back in time in the first place.
I also enjoyed how everyone struggled with their own limitations in this book as well - Hermione took on far too much coursework and found herself going slightly mad, Harry had his own past experiences coming back to haunt him in the worst possible way with the Dementors, and Ron's pride strained his friendship with Hermione over the pet rat he never liked very much anyway. All of the major characters grew a lot in this book as their world expanded and got darker.