Book 7 [Archive] - THE TOLKIEN FORUM

Erestor Arcamen

07-23-2007, 05:58 PM

Ok I'm starting this so we can discuss the book a little bit. If you don't wanna read spoilers I'd guess you probrably shouldn't come here until you've read the entire book or at least most of it. anyways, what did you all think? I personally thought it was her best yet. I hope she write's something else next like maybe the real life and times of Dumbledore, or maybe a history of Hogwarts or something. I think that the way J.K. finished this book, it would be impossible, just as she wishes, for anyone to write any spin offs involving Harry.

Noldor_returned

07-24-2007, 02:12 PM

I finished it about 90 minutes ago...it was a great read, very gripping, although I'm curious as to whether that's because it's the final adventure. Although she tied it up well and it was one of the best endings I have ever read/seen. I especially liked how it was all explained and how Voldie's death wasn't drawn out.

Maeglin

07-25-2007, 12:52 AM

I thoroughly enjoyed the book...for the most part. I loved all the action and suspense at the beginning and throughout the second half, but for about 200 pages there, NOTHING happened! It was so annoying! It was just "We're in the forest, we're hungry, and we're bored," followed by "We're in the forest, hungry, bored, wearing this horcrux that gives us terrible PMS, and bickering." Ron leaves, Ron comes back, and let's start the story again, yay!

I enjoyed it aside from that though. I would have liked the final battle to be more action-packed and I would have enjoyed more of Snape's presence in the book, but thats alright. Also, the epilogue might be one of the lamest things I have ever read; she definitely should have just ended it with Harry's last line at the end of "The Flaw in the Plan." One thing that would have made me happy in the epilogue would have been if one of the children was named Fred, seeing as he died for all of them and was Ron and Ginny's brother, but I guess George would take care of naming a child after his brother?

I'm also glad that Lupin wasn't a death eater, as I had seen someone post that in the other thread (the one I started called "supposed leak"), so the whole book I was just looking for clues suggesting that he was a death eater, and I found them (the whole argument with Harry, being the first to accuse people after the big attack at the opening, etc.).

Narya

07-25-2007, 09:31 AM

I just wanted to point out how almost all my predictions for Book 7 came out.

:: The fact about Snape and Lily
:: The fact about Harry's scar being a Horcrux
:: The fact about a Ravenclaw item being one of the Horcruxes
:: The fact that one of the Weasley's will die

The only prediction I made that did not come true - and which I am soooo thankful that it didn't - was that Ron would die in Book 7. Thank you JK Rowling for not killing him. He was my favorite character of all.

Ermundo

07-25-2007, 03:35 PM

I'm also glad that Lupin wasn't a death eater, as I had seen someone post that in the other thread (the one I started called "supposed leak"),

To that Maeglin I take credit. Actually, I knew all along that the supposed details I had posted were completely wrong, being that I'd read the book earlier. It was really intended to be a joke, just to see the reactions of all you hardcore Potter fans. I, and I hope others do to, think it was a good joke. But if anyone needs an apology, imagine Ermundo giving you a pat on the back and a coupon to Starbucks, all in good faith.;)

Thinks to himself: *haHA! da seed has been planted, the chaos has been unnnleeaaasssheeed!!! MWAHAHAHAHA*

yhwh1st

07-25-2007, 06:51 PM

I finished the book at 1:00 exactly this morning. :rolleyes: That was really funny! In about 14 hours, too! Broken up by lapses of sleep and work.:p It was one of the greatest yet, but I'll admit I'm a little disappointed that she killed off Fred. The Weasley twins were among my very favorite characters. :(

I was really glad Jo brought back my favorite painting (or character in a painting). Sir Cadogan. :D pp 621 "Sir Cadogan rushed from painting to painting beside [Harry], clanking along in his armor, screaming encouragement, his fat little pony cantering behind him." Hehehe! I laughed so hard when I read that I think I freaked my dog out a little!

I figured out the general plotline not far into the book. I knew at the end that Harry dould not die persa, but would only temporarly lose his "spirit thingy". Or in other words: he was only "mostly dead". ;) Though I'll admit I didn't expect Harry to be a Horocrux (sp?).

Noldor_returned

07-26-2007, 10:47 AM

page 621? I thought there was only 607 pages in the book...I'm pretty sure that was a typo...I'll overlook it if it is.

BUT GAH!!! Fred!!! You can't have one without the other! How will Weasley's Wizard Wheezes go? One thing I was disappointed in is that Lee Jordan didn't work them in Book Six. So much for being great friends...

Erestor Arcamen

07-26-2007, 08:45 PM

there's 700 something pages in the book. and she did say she would kill off some characters. I'm sad about Fred too, but it could have been worse, she could have killed Ron or Hermione or something.

Noldor_returned

07-27-2007, 11:37 AM

I wish she had...they are so annoying after 7 books. There was no real shocking deaths. If she was going to kill someone, there could have been a larger impact. Yes, Fred and Mad-Eye had ongoing mourning, but after Dumbledore nothing was so shocking. Snape's death happened too quickly. Voldemort's death happened too quickly. I found that too much time was spent on Harry and his cohorts rushing around trying to stay safe and make some huge breakthrough that everyone's emotions seemed to have been forgotten. Every other book seems to include in-depth writings on how people felt and it worked wonderfully. In Book 7 there would be one paragraph, if that, on the impact it had on anyone, as they would always move on as there was something else to do.

Majimaune

07-29-2007, 07:16 AM

I liked and disliked the book. How characters die with hardly anything, Harry being a horcrux to name a few. I didn't like how it was good at the start, good at the end but downright sh*t in the middle. It was boring. I didn't like how characters just faded out of the book like Kreacher. He had that story part and then he disappears. Also the nineteen years later thing could not have been there.

Things I did like was Neville killing Nagini and then him taking over Herbology.

yhwh1st

07-29-2007, 07:25 AM

I liked the majority of the book. What I didn't like is hardly worth mentioning. I am glad that NEITHER OF THE WEASLEY TWINS DIED. They are among my very favorite characters and I'm really glad that they both survived the seven books.

Majimaune

07-29-2007, 08:16 AM

Spoilers: Didn't you read it where Fred dies? He is as dead as a doornail.

Wolfshead

07-30-2007, 01:00 PM

page 621? I thought there was only 607 pages in the book...I'm pretty sure that was a typo...I'll overlook it if it is.
I think the American version is longer - I guess they need a bigger font size to read it or something... :D

UK version is 607 pages long.

As for predictions, I was quite accurate.

RAB - Correctly identified as Regulus A. Black.
One of the Weasley twins would die.
Harry would survive (my dad was convinced Rowling would kill him off).
Snape would be revealed to be a good guy.
And when it looked like Harry was going to die I figured out that it was all about believing he was sacrificing himself. Although I think that might just have been the denial stage of the grieving process...

Admittedly though, I didn't think Harry was going to be a horcrux.

yhwh1st

07-30-2007, 06:46 PM

I read it all the way through. Every word. Don't take me too literally, Maji. ;)

Spoiler: It's not the Weasley twins w/o both of them. They are among my favorite characters and if I want to pretend they are still the Weasley twins, I can. *sticks out tongue*

Erestor Arcamen

07-30-2007, 11:39 PM

did you UK'ers hear that a bunch of the books were missing a lot of pages? 607 pages is like 138 pages less than the American, even if the font is smaller, it seems like a LOT of pages doesn't it?

Majimaune

07-31-2007, 08:34 AM

RAB - Correctly identified as Regulus A. Black.
One of the Weasley twins would die.
Harry would survive (my dad was convinced Rowling would kill him off).
Snape would be revealed to be a good guy.
And when it looked like Harry was going to die I figured out that it was all about believing he was sacrificing himself. Although I think that might just have been the denial stage of the grieving process...
Admittedly though, I didn't think Harry was going to be a horcrux.I was with most of them as well. Although I fought hard against the idea of Harry being a horcrux. He was an unintentional one so not even Voldy knew of it.

did you UK'ers hear that a bunch of the books were missing a lot of pages? 607 pages is like 138 pages less than the American, even if the font is smaller, it seems like a LOT of pages doesn't it?Well us Aussies and UK'ers (to put it your way) can actually read so we don't need a letter per page.

Wolfshead

07-31-2007, 09:08 AM

did you UK'ers hear that a bunch of the books were missing a lot of pages? 607 pages is like 138 pages less than the American, even if the font is smaller, it seems like a LOT of pages doesn't it?
Haha, nice try, but certainly not. The spacing and typeface must be pretty large in the US copies.

Majimaune

07-31-2007, 09:21 AM

Yes like I said... We don't need a letter a page.

Noldor_returned

08-05-2007, 11:18 AM

After having a week or so since I finished, I've found that I much prefer books 3 and 6. PoA was really good as it was when JKR took it up a notch and begn writing darker novels. HBP was also great because you could sense what was coming and it didn't give a lot away. Besides, the way it set up things so that you didn't completely know what was happening in the next book was great.

Majimaune

08-07-2007, 09:31 AM

Noldor_returned

08-08-2007, 12:15 AM

It must be hard to write a conclusion to something so big. X-Men 3 was a disappointment for me after number two, and Star Wars Revenge of the Sith (being the last movie made) was also a letdown. All three are good, just not as great as the ones before them.

That said, Return of the King is my favourite part of Lotr.

baragund

08-31-2007, 03:12 PM

Call me slowpoke but I just finished reading Deathly Hallows yesterday. As they say, "Slow and steady wins the race".

Two questions (so far) for any of our resident Harry Potter scholars:

1. In "King's Cross" where Harry and Dumbledore are chatting in some kind of netherworld, what was the wimpering, dying baby-thing that Rowling spent so much ink keeping it in the forefront of the narrative but never explaining? Was it the piece of Voldemort's soul, as the 7th Horcrux, that was grafted to Harry's? If so, would it have just completed dying and then have gone to where ever the rest of Voldemort's soul went?

2. In "The Flaw in the Plan" how did Neville Longbottom get Godric Gryffindor's sword? I thought Griphook made off with it in the chaos after they broke into Gringotts.

I loved Deathly Hallows. Definitely not a kid's book; I, too, had a hard time putting it down. It was a huge improvement to books 4-6 that, to me, had a lot of superfluous stuff that one had to plow through.

Starflower

08-31-2007, 03:35 PM

I think this one is by far the most fast-paced of all the books - so many things happening ... maybe too much?
One thing I was definitely not happy about was some of those numbered among the dead, c'mon you just can't kill one of the Weasleys! That's just plain wrong.

Also, the fight between Bellatrix & Molly seemes a little contrived.

But I liked the ending, it was neatly done - leaving no room for future wanna-be sequels.

Majimaune

09-01-2007, 08:05 AM

1. In "King's Cross" where Harry and Dumbledore are chatting in some kind of netherworld, what was the wimpering, dying baby-thing that Rowling spent so much ink keeping it in the forefront of the narrative but never explaining? Was it the piece of Voldemort's soul, as the 7th Horcrux, that was grafted to Harry's? If so, would it have just completed dying and then have gone to where ever the rest of Voldemort's soul went?

2. In "The Flaw in the Plan" how did Neville Longbottom get Godric Gryffindor's sword? I thought Griphook made off with it in the chaos after they broke into Gringotts.With your first question I can't help you and the second I thought the same thing.

yhwh1st

09-02-2007, 07:13 AM

Two questions (so far) for any of our resident Harry Potter scholars:

1. In "King's Cross" where Harry and Dumbledore are chatting in some kind of netherworld, what was the wimpering, dying baby-thing that Rowling spent so much ink keeping it in the forefront of the narrative but never explaining? Was it the piece of Voldemort's soul, as the 7th Horcrux, that was grafted to Harry's? If so, would it have just completed dying and then have gone to where ever the rest of Voldemort's soul went?

2. In "The Flaw in the Plan" how did Neville Longbottom get Godric Gryffindor's sword? I thought Griphook made off with it in the chaos after they broke into Gringotts.
Concerning #1: I think, and this is just speculation, that it is Voldemort's soul. Remember that it is the part that lives forever. It is crying, snivling, etc. because it is so completely evil that it takes no pleasure in the pleasent surroundings and wishes it could curl up and 'die' again. That's what I think it is, but again, it's just speculation.

#2: Remember at the end of C.O.S. where Dumbledore told Harry that only a true Gryffindorian could pull the sword out of the hat? I think it happens that way for anyone who is a true Gryffindorian, regardless of where the sword was last. I think that's another part of the magic of the Sorting Hat's. :cool:

baragund

09-05-2007, 12:34 AM

Thanks Meg.:)

A little bit more closure on what happened to Volemort's soul would have been nice.

Regarding the sword, I recall that Goblin's magic was peculiar, like the house-elves, and that it could somehow trump wizard's magic. It's not like the sword was resting peacefully in Dumbledore's office like it was in Chamber of Secrets.

Another small observation: I would have appreciated a little good old-fashioned Muggle violence in the fight scenes. It was so refreshing to me when Hermione gave Draco that left cross in Prisoner of Azkaban. A well-placed baseball bat upside the head would have been more effective thanStupefy, don't you think?:D

Majimaune

09-05-2007, 08:30 AM

Regarding the sword, I recall that Goblin's magic was peculiar, like the house-elves, and that it could somehow trump wizard's magic. It's not like the sword was resting peacefully in Dumbledore's office like it was in Chamber of Secrets.

Another small observation: I would have appreciated a little good old-fashioned Muggle violence in the fight scenes. It was so refreshing to me when Hermione gave Draco that left cross in Prisoner of Azkaban. A well-placed baseball bat upside the head would have been more effective thanStupefy, don't you think?:DThe sword wasn't sitting peacefully in Dumbledore's office. It was lost somewhere.

A bit of violence is always good.

Maeglin

09-06-2007, 09:51 PM

A well-placed baseball bat upside the head would have been more effective thanStupefy, don't you think?:D

Yes, I agree. I often wondered myself why muggle antics didn't get used more. Did it never occur to the wizards to just take a pistol and shoot Voldemort in the head while someone distracted him? :rolleyes:

baragund

09-06-2007, 11:58 PM

Good point, Maeglin.

One more question, and this is a biggie I think:

What was the source of hostility the between the Death Eaters and the Muggles? More puzzling, why the seemingly greater hostility to those of magical abilities who are not pure-blooded? I could understand a little how the wizarding community could have resentment toward Muggle society as a result of the persecution in medieval times that led the wizards to develop their separate and hidden communities. But that was 400-500 years ago and there seemed to be peaceful coexistence until Voldemort came along. Besides, in this day and age, people are more open-minded and would be more tolerant of people with different abilities than, say, during horse-and-buggy days.

But I'm reallly stumped why a pureblood wizard would harbor hatred toward a half-blood or someone of Muggle heritage who develops magical capabilities, like a Hermione Granger. It seems to me that once someone has magical capabilities, they are part of the community, period.

I apologize for making this analogy but it's the only one that keeps popping in my head. If someone is born with mixed African and Caucasion heritage, they are considered African. This happens if the amount of African heritage is 1/2, 1/4, 1/8 or even less. It seems to me the same would apply to a person with magical abilities.

Chymaera

09-08-2007, 09:14 PM

There are never any good arguements for racism. *shrug*

What I am intrested in is the relationship between Harry and the Malfoys.
The Malfoys had a change of heart and found that family was more important then being Voldermorts pawns.

Harry must have returned Draco his wand and there seems to be peace between them if not friendship.

Also some unanswered questions:

Who is Headmaster at Hogwarts?

Did Harry, Ron, and Herminone have to go back to Hogwarts to compelte the last year for their NEWTS?

Who is teaching Defence of the Dark arts?

Did Harry become an Auror?

Did Harry become Minister of Magic?

Is young James' middle name Sirius?

:)

Noldor_returned

09-09-2007, 02:08 AM

Let's see how many questions I can answer.

@ Maeglin: because wizards didn't like killing, and using a Muggle weapon would have symbolised them as being uncivilised.

@ baragund: I think, because the Death Eaters were all supposedly pure-bloods, anyone else was inferior. Therefore they do not deserve proper treatment. I think that is the reasoning, however I could easily be wrong.

@ Chymaera: I think whatsername the Transfiguration lady is still Headmaster. They may have made an exception for the NEWTs, however it is likely they would have to do a test of some kind; their whole schooling year was disrupted and they weren't the only ones affected. Defence of the Dark Arts would change every year unless the curse has been lifted or if it went when Voldie died. For the next two questions, in that time frame I don't think Harry would have been Minister for Magic, but might be on his way, although the Auror thing is a good question. And the final question I can only say whatever is written in that last section is how it is, and if it says James Sirius then I would say so, if not, then probably not.

I hope that all made sense...

Majimaune

09-09-2007, 02:50 AM

Chymaera

09-09-2007, 08:26 AM

Can I answer a few of your questions with this link maybe? http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/19959323/

Wow, thanks Majimaune. I guess that is as good as I am going to get.
Except for the Potter/Malfoy thing and I can pretty much write that chapter in my head.:)