Read; Then Recycle As Door Stop! (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J. K. Rowling)

Member Name: MattRoberts

Product:	Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J. K. Rowling
Date:	30/07/03 (42 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It does keep you hooked, Hermoine's as great as ever

Disadvantages: Not as good as book 3

Having only read book 3, I’m one of those people who don’t know the whole Voldermort thing! I’ve learnt that he killed Harry’s parents. I’ve also learnt he tried to kill Harry. I knew very little else about him, because in book 3, he’s not mentioned in great detail.

When I read book 4 I started learning more and more about him, and he was even the first well-known character to be written in the book. In the first chapter we read about him and his sleazy helper Wormtail.

What does, and I think always will amaze me is the amount of time Harry has survived. It’s funny in a way, because as regular as clockwork, every year there’s someone there to kill him. And there’s always something to save him.

Harry is at it again! He’s back a Hogwarts, and he’s, guess what? Oh, yes, he’s escaping death once again! He’s luckier than black cat crossing the road with a money spider on his back!


**The Plot**

Unlike book 3, and I presume book 1 and 2, the opening of the book is not about Harry awakening on his birthday. Not about Harry eating with Aunt Petuna and Uncle Vernon, but it starts with a different character plotting to kill Harry. It begins with Voldermort.

In the first chapter we get to find out a lot. We get to see the ending before the beginning in a way, because Voldermort mentions things that we later understand.

Whilst he’s plotting to kill Harry, over at Privet Drive, Harry is seeing their plotting. Not in real life, not o a television, but in a dream. Everything that’s happening to Voldermort, Harry can see in his dream.

The he wakes. He wakes and his scar burns. It burns so badly. He begins to write to his Godfather informing him, and settles down to sleep!

Happy to get away from Privet Drive, Harry goes to stay with Ron – his best friends – parent’s pre to the Quidditch World

Cup, This is basically our World Cup, with a few adjustments.

In the World Cup, Harry discovers that his wand is missing. Who has it? And why steal his pacific one? Why? When searching for it, The Dark Mark is shown in the sky. The Dark Mark being the mark Voldermort shows so his Death Eaters will come to him.

Was it Voldermort who showed this Mark? How could he? If he didn’t, who did? A fellow Death Eater? Who was that Death Eater? But, if Harry thinks he’ll find the Death Eater, it’s almost impossible, because the World Cup is swarming with wizards and witches. Most importantly of all, is Voldermort back in power?

Most of this book is set around the Triwziard Tournament, which is a tournament held between different schools. It was held years ago, but due to many deaths occurring, it was cancelled.

But, it’s back, and three people are chosen to play. One from each school. That means that Hogwarts have guests staying with them throughout the book!

There is an age limit set, no one under 17 can enter, and therefore Harry’s dreams are shattered. He’s not really bothered but wouldn’t have minded to do it.

The names of the pupils and their house in their school have to be entered into the Goblet Of Fire. The Goblet will decide who plays for which school. Three will be chosen, and only one will win.

After reading three names from the Goblet, Dumbledore begins to congratulate the three contenders, but suddenly Dumbledore is shocked.

“The fire in the Goblet had just turned red again. Spark were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly in the air, and bourn upon it was another piece of parchment.

Automatically it seemed Dumbledore reaches out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out an stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and every-one in the room
star
ed at Dumbledore. And then Dumbledore cleared his throat, and read out -
’Harry Potter.’”

- Chapter seventeen, page 238.

Harry has been chosen. He is the only person ever to be the fourth champion in the tournament. But, the tournament is dangerous. Did someone put his name in as a ploy to kill him?

Was this a death eater? Why would they do something like this? Well, with the help of the New Defence Against Dar Art’s teacher – the ex manager of Ministry of Magic – Moody, his friends Ron and Hermoine, and his Godfather Sirius, he tries to survive the three dangerous tasks.



** My Opinion**



I think I can probably say this book – Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire – is the biggest book I’ve read. I’ve read 500 pages before, but with a whopping 636 pages I think this is a record!

You do become aware of the length sometimes, you feel that it could’ve been cut down a bit, especially in earlier parts of the book, when Harry is staying at Privet Drive, and nothing much is happening.

What I also noticed is, what I class as a downer, is that even though Rowling wrote marvellously and wrote many twists that came together at the end, and even though it show’s how clever she is to think these up, she brought them in pretty fast at the end.

Instead of spreading some of the twists out, she brought them all in at the last stages, and instead of explaining them thoroughly with reactions, they were rushed, and two twists were written on pages 632, 633, 634 and 635!

Most of this book is set around the Triwziard Tournament. Even though Dumbledore makes sure no-one can enter under seventeen, reader know in a way that his name is going to be called out some how or other.

You know that such a big thing like this wouldn’t go by without Mr Potter having a go and being his usual ignorant sel
f!

<b
r>Also in the book, it comes more noticeable that Harry fancies a girl in Hogwarts called Choo. In book 3 she was mentioned a few times, and in book 4 he even plucks up the courage to ask her out for the dance at Christmas. She declines, but only because she’s going with someone else!

What else, I think comes more noticeable is Ron’s love for Hermoine. You may think, if you’ve read other books that I’m taking nonsense, but Ron and Hermoine are jealous each time they talk to another girl/boy.

Both of them bicker all the time, and it’s so obvious that Ron fancies her, when she goes to the dance with someone, and he’s not too keen on it. A match made in heaven I say!

What I liked in the book, was the way Rowling kept us hooked. She did this much better than in book 3. She led us up to the big ending, and she really made us wonder what would actually happen.

I think the twists weren’t as shocking as book 3, but I don’t know whether that was because that was my first taster of Harry, or whether it was actually better. Both have big twists, and without giving too much away, it’s a bit like book 3’s ending.

I wouldn’t say that Goblet Of Fire was better than Prisoner Of Azkaban altogether, because Azkaban was certainly much more enjoyable and exciting. Even though Goblet was still enjoyable, and it totally keeps you hooked, I preferred book 3 for many reasons.

I think giving a big book like this for children to read is marvellous, because even I, after reading it in under a week, feel a sense of achievement being able to get myself through so many words.

Not only that, but it keeps you hooked until the very last word!

**All in all**

enjoyable fun for anyone! Rowling manages to keep us hooked once again, and even shock us a time or two as well. A good read.

**Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire** r>
You can buy the
book, from Amazon for a mere £5,99. This is a good deal, in my opinion, and you do get 636 pages for that! Not that they’ll stay unread for long! I’m off to read book 5 this second!


Written By: Matt Roberts