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A review by ladyk23
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (large print) by J.K. Rowling
4.0
Before I even picked up the fifth Harry Potter book I was told by a lot of people that it's the worst of the books. The reason being that Harry is in a foul mood throughout, which puts you, as the person reading his thoughts and feelings, in a bad mood too. I honestly don't know if this foreknowledge helped or hindered me because for a long time I put off reading this book, and I wasn't at all excited to read it, whereas the others I have been. So I suppose in that sense it hindered me, but then I am glad to have been prepared for Harry's low mood. Not that knowing in any way really helped.
I should point out here that I have seen all of the movies so it's not that I am so late to the party that I have no idea how these books go, just that I still wanted to read the books, and am slowly making my way through them. I read the first three in pretty quick succession but from book four onwards when they started turning into doorstops I decided I would only read one Potter per year, in the hope I'd be able to read other things in between. I'm a slow reader okay so this seemed like a good idea at the time, and also it's not like I'll forget what happened, as like I say I've seen the films.
So I picked up book five as the next in the series for me to read, with a sort of dread about doing the actual reading. And I must say that it's not a very enjoyable book. A lot of bad stuff happens to Harry and Co in this instalment and yes, Harry is very emo in this book, and quite shitty to his friends a lot of the time. He's definitely not the most likeable character this time around. But again, he has had a lot to deal with in the previous four books, and this one is no picnic either.
The Order Of The Phoenix of the title are a band of witches and wizards who have come together to stop the dark lord himself - Voldemort - who we know from The Goblet Of Fire has once again arisen with one goal in mind, to kill Harry Potter. The Order tried to stop him the last time he rose to power and are going to give it their all this time around too. In the mean time poor Harry is being accused of using magic outside of school grounds, and in front of muggles no less, when in reality he was protecting his cousin from a Dementor attack! Once he manages to get back to the safety of Hogwarts things don't really improve, as Harry, Hermione and Ron discover that Hagrid is missing, and there is a new Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher in the form of Ministry of Magic employee Dolores Umbridge, who has already taken a dislike to Harry.
All in all it's no wonder Harry is utterly miserable throughout but yes it is quite a hard read because of that. And much like the films, the books really start to get darker and more grown up with each instalment, and as this is the fifth of seven books it's already pretty bleak reading. Obviously for anyone who has embarked on this journey with Harry and Co, you know it's not really too much to ask for us to keep going with him, as we all want to know how he's going to get on in the fight against you-know-who.
It's still an incredible feat by JK Rowling who undertook to weave such a complex web of having this secret wizarding world running parallel to our own, and making it so rich that we believe in it entirely, and characters that are so lovable or hateable (depending on the house you're in) that you are completely invested in the outcome of. None of her brilliance should be overlooked just because she wrote a bleak story for a stroppy teenager.
**Slightly spoilery but I won't say why** Plus the end of this one is so incredibly sad that you really need to go through it to appreciate the last two books fully. Or so I believe from the films as obviously I haven't read them yet!
One thing I will say, which I am so glad they lessened in the films, is how horrible everyone is to Luna. She really is horribly bullied in this book and as someone who has experienced bullying not only did I find it quite triggering, I also felt so protective of her. Rowling writes her as if she is completely unaware of how mean people are being towards her, but I got the feeling throughout that she was only written this way so that you didn't come to despise the main characters that you've built an affinity with in the books leading up to now.
I'm so glad that in the films her teasing was lessened, and that she quickly overcame the other characters initial views of her and became a core and relied upon member of their little gang, much quicker than I feel the journey is going to be for her in the books.
However, if you've come this far then you have to carry on. The writing is still impeccable, the world building so stunning and the characters that you know and love are still the same, just a little older and more grumpy. Bit like me then.
I should point out here that I have seen all of the movies so it's not that I am so late to the party that I have no idea how these books go, just that I still wanted to read the books, and am slowly making my way through them. I read the first three in pretty quick succession but from book four onwards when they started turning into doorstops I decided I would only read one Potter per year, in the hope I'd be able to read other things in between. I'm a slow reader okay so this seemed like a good idea at the time, and also it's not like I'll forget what happened, as like I say I've seen the films.
So I picked up book five as the next in the series for me to read, with a sort of dread about doing the actual reading. And I must say that it's not a very enjoyable book. A lot of bad stuff happens to Harry and Co in this instalment and yes, Harry is very emo in this book, and quite shitty to his friends a lot of the time. He's definitely not the most likeable character this time around. But again, he has had a lot to deal with in the previous four books, and this one is no picnic either.
The Order Of The Phoenix of the title are a band of witches and wizards who have come together to stop the dark lord himself - Voldemort - who we know from The Goblet Of Fire has once again arisen with one goal in mind, to kill Harry Potter. The Order tried to stop him the last time he rose to power and are going to give it their all this time around too. In the mean time poor Harry is being accused of using magic outside of school grounds, and in front of muggles no less, when in reality he was protecting his cousin from a Dementor attack! Once he manages to get back to the safety of Hogwarts things don't really improve, as Harry, Hermione and Ron discover that Hagrid is missing, and there is a new Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher in the form of Ministry of Magic employee Dolores Umbridge, who has already taken a dislike to Harry.
All in all it's no wonder Harry is utterly miserable throughout but yes it is quite a hard read because of that. And much like the films, the books really start to get darker and more grown up with each instalment, and as this is the fifth of seven books it's already pretty bleak reading. Obviously for anyone who has embarked on this journey with Harry and Co, you know it's not really too much to ask for us to keep going with him, as we all want to know how he's going to get on in the fight against you-know-who.
It's still an incredible feat by JK Rowling who undertook to weave such a complex web of having this secret wizarding world running parallel to our own, and making it so rich that we believe in it entirely, and characters that are so lovable or hateable (depending on the house you're in) that you are completely invested in the outcome of. None of her brilliance should be overlooked just because she wrote a bleak story for a stroppy teenager.
**Slightly spoilery but I won't say why** Plus the end of this one is so incredibly sad that you really need to go through it to appreciate the last two books fully. Or so I believe from the films as obviously I haven't read them yet!
One thing I will say, which I am so glad they lessened in the films, is how horrible everyone is to Luna. She really is horribly bullied in this book and as someone who has experienced bullying not only did I find it quite triggering, I also felt so protective of her. Rowling writes her as if she is completely unaware of how mean people are being towards her, but I got the feeling throughout that she was only written this way so that you didn't come to despise the main characters that you've built an affinity with in the books leading up to now.
I'm so glad that in the films her teasing was lessened, and that she quickly overcame the other characters initial views of her and became a core and relied upon member of their little gang, much quicker than I feel the journey is going to be for her in the books.
However, if you've come this far then you have to carry on. The writing is still impeccable, the world building so stunning and the characters that you know and love are still the same, just a little older and more grumpy. Bit like me then.