Magic and Mystery. (Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling)

Member Name: docpov

Product:	Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
Date:	25/08/05 (195 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Spellbinding continuation of the saga of Harry Potter.

Disadvantages: It is better if you have read the rest of the series first.

Harry Potter fever is spreading through the country like wildfire once again, with the release of this the sixth book in the trials and tribulations of our favourite junior wizard.
The Harry Potter phenomenon is huge and whether you like the books/films/audio CD’s, games, ect, ect or not there can not be many people who do not at least recognise the name Harry Potter. This is amazing really for what started out as a character in a children’s book and I think this latest instalment can only enlarge Harry’s loyal band of followers.

A quick bit of history. Harry Potter attends Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry and each book follows the adventures that Harry together with his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Grainger have during that school year. Most of these adventures involve Harry’s battle against the forces of darkness in the guise of Lord Voldemort, An evil wizard who murdered Harry’s parents and tried to kill Harry when he was a baby. He has been trying throughout the series to regain his powers that his failed attack on Harry had robbed him of. The latest of these plans ended in the death of someone close to Harry at the end of book five and it is a few weeks after that incident that the Half blood prince resumes the tale.

The Halfblood Prince follows the same course as the previous books. Harry starts off at his Aunt and Uncle Dursley’s house in the summer holidays and then starts the new term at Hogwarts although this is now mingled with other things far more than it was in the early books. This time Harry will use history to help him in his struggles. This helps to expand and bring the magical world that thrives alongside the muggle world (our world) to life.
That is all I am going to tell you about the story because I am not about to let out any hints at all but be ready for some shocks and suprises.

It is an instalment and if you have not read the previous five books then I think it would be hard to enjoy The Halfblood Prince. A cynic would say that the fact that it is not a standalone book is a marketing ploy to get new readers to cough up for the previous five books, adding to J.K. Rowlings enormous bank balance. I am of the opinion that had it been written that way it would have lost some of its mystique and would have got a bit tedious for hardened ‘Harry’ readers who would just be going over old ground.

For adults the writing style could be seen as a bit stilted and a use of fairly simple language is employed but it does have to be remembered that this is essentially a children’s book. Even though a very large number of adults read the books (so much so that there are two versions of the book, a children’s and an adult’s although the only difference is the dust cover.) I think the books are really aimed at teenagers looking for a bit of magical mystery.

The Halfblood Prince delivers plenty of both magic and mystery with the mystery more prominent and deeper than it has been in previous adventures. Possibly as a large portion of the readership are in fact adults the writing style has been aimed a bit more with the older audience in mind. However it could be that now Harry and all the others in his school year are getting older, mid teenage issues such as relationships have to be addressed in more depth.

I felt that the book was darker than the previous ones and is in places more difficult to understand but I certainly enjoyed it and my twelve-year-old daughter is enjoying it too. That shows the range of appeal that Harry Potter has.
This book came across to me as a work leading up to a huge finale, which will be the seventh and last instalment of the saga. I personally can’t wait to read that, but I guess I will have to wait with baited breath like thousands of others for at least a year or more.

Copies are available in hardback wherever you go and at a large variety of prices, all below the rrp. We bought our adult copy from Amazon for £8.99 and our children’s copy for £9.97 from Tesco.

If you are a hardened Harry fan then you won’t need my recommendation but if you are new to the series I would say ignore all the hype and give it a go. You might get a nice surprise. I would recommend starting with the philosopher’s stone though.


© Docpov 2005

Summary: Yet another great story telling more of the adventures of Harry Potter.