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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book
4) This book hasn't been published so how can I do a review? I can't. But I do want to make an overall comment on the series to date. Unless you have had no access to any children, or parents, or avid readers, then you may not have heard about Harry Potter. They are listed as suitable for ages 9-12 but adults will also benefit from reading these books. Here's what Amazon has to say about the first book in the series: "Say you've spent the first 10 years of your life sleeping under the stairs of a family who loathes you. Then, in an absurd, magical twist of fate you find yourself surrounded by wizards, a caged snowy owl, a phoenix-feather wand, and jellybeans that come in every flavor, including strawberry, curry, grass, and sardine. Not only that, but you discover that you are a wizard yourself! This is exactly what happens to young Harry Potter in J.K. Rowling's enchanting, funny debut novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."
Well, I loved it just as much as the others. I don’t think that the general flavour is more serious but the last few chapters are much darker. There isn’t any gratuitous violence but there is arbitrary death – just like real life. This is where come critics may be harsher with Rowling. I found it both realistic and unsetting appropriate. Rowling’s has done what others children’s writers do not. She has not only let the characters age year by year, but the complexity of life and the fullness of the characters also develop s they mature. Perhaps by the time she completes her next volume, they won’t be appropriate for young readers but they too will grow into the books. As an adult, I have been captivated and look forward to the on-going adventure.
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©
Ward-Green
& Hill Associates Ltd. ~ 877 . 323 . 9137
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The
first thing you notice is the size – all 636 pages, about 40%
longer than the other volumes to date. Some say it isn’t as good
as the others. I’m not sure that is accurate. To me is it more
about unrealistic expectations. I highly encourage everyone,
regardless of age, to read it. However, I am concerned that after
all of the hype, it may be a bit of a let down. The first time that
I expe4rienced this kind of let down was finally going to see the
movie M.A.S.H. It had been in the theatres for sometime and all my
friends and acquaintances insisted I go to see it. When I finally
did, I thought it was amusing and pretty good, but not worth all of
the high praise. I had been oversold and couldn’t enjoy it for
myself without some sense of preconditioning. I think the Harry
Potter Books have fallen to the same fate as all great
entertainment.
