A little background. I was in Grade 1 (or as the Americans call it first grade) when I first read the first four Harry Potter books. And I loved the first book quite a bit such that 7 year old Matitya was very much caught off guard by the Cerebus Syndrome of the second. The thing is that even as a child I wasn’t bothered by it for the sequels because I was prepared for it by book Two. This is the only one where it feels like an abrupt shift which is a problem with it, though likely an inevitable one.
The first book brought up with Olivander that Harry and the Big Bad are Not So Different and this very well builds upon that. It builds upon Draco’s Establishing Character Moment when it delves into the bigotry theme.
It shatters the utopia image of Harry’s world with the introduction of Dobby as an oppressed slave. Again this is before the Book 4 retcon.
And Lucius Malfoy is much of an impressive villain than Quirell was due to his duplicitous Puppetmaster nature, his political ambitions ambition is evil after all, and his actually believing in the Dark Lord. And I like how it works out Hagrid’s Backstory from the first book.
Literature It is our Choices that make us who we are not our abilities.
A little background. I was in Grade 1 (or as the Americans call it first grade) when I first read the first four Harry Potter books. And I loved the first book quite a bit such that 7 year old Matitya was very much caught off guard by the Cerebus Syndrome of the second. The thing is that even as a child I wasn’t bothered by it for the sequels because I was prepared for it by book Two. This is the only one where it feels like an abrupt shift which is a problem with it, though likely an inevitable one.
It actually has a lot of things going for it. For example it delves into the Backstory of Tom the Dark Lord whose father abandoned him before he was born as a result of Fantastic Racism when he found out Tom’s mother was a witch and that is Tom’s Freudian excuse for his Fantastic Racism against Muggles with patricide being his Start of Darkness. And yes I am aware Book 6 retconned this story.
The first book brought up with Olivander that Harry and the Big Bad are Not So Different and this very well builds upon that. It builds upon Draco’s Establishing Character Moment when it delves into the bigotry theme.
It shatters the utopia image of Harry’s world with the introduction of Dobby as an oppressed slave. Again this is before the Book 4 retcon.
And Lucius Malfoy is much of an impressive villain than Quirell was due to his duplicitous Puppetmaster nature, his political ambitions ambition is evil after all, and his actually believing in the Dark Lord. And I like how it works out Hagrid’s Backstory from the first book.
I like Lockheart as Comic Relief.
And I like how Harry is bothered by how similar he is to Voldemort only to learn the Aesop that “it is our choices that define us not our abilities”.
So do I prefer this to the first book? No. But I still think it’s pretty good.