The Deathly Hallows

I spent part of this weekend reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I'll say this for JK Rowling, she isn't afraid to kill off popular characters.

Parts of the book were quite touching. It is very different from the previous six books, without being unfamiliar. We learn a lot about Dumbledore, Snape, the Malfoys, the Weasleys, and of course, a few things about the main players as well. One character I have always hoped would have a heroic moment, when doubt has seized everyone else, has that moment. Another proves to be fierce when it counts most. All in all, I'd say it is a satisfying end to the series and wrapped up very close to how I imagined it would finish.

One thing: if it has been a while since you read books five and especially six, you might want to revisit them before reading this book. If you remember what a Horcrux is, you'll get the gist of things. I'm going to go back and reread The Half-Blood Prince because there are references to things that happened in that book that have quite slipped my memory. I re-read The Goblet of Fire and read The Order of the Phoenix in one day and The Half-Blood Prince the following day, one rainy weekend just over two years ago, so it isn't entirely surprising that some details didn't take hold, but it won't be a bother to go back and do a quick re-read.

For the nay-sayers out there, nobody is saying this series is Great Literature. But if you are embarrassed to say you've read Harry Potter, if you can't enjoy these books for what they are, then you've lost what it was like to be a child, when you had no perspective and everything that happened was big and important. Too bad.