Harry Potter

18
Sep
2021
Quidditch Through the Ages

Quidditch Through the Ages

Quidditch Through the Ages is a very informative book, about the history of a wizarding sport (played on broomsticks) called quidditch. The rules of quidditch are simple. The objective of the game is to score more points than your opponents. Each goal is worth ten points and catching the Golden Snitch is worth one-hundred and fifty points. The game ends when the Snitch is caught. 

In this fictional history book by wizard Kennilworthy Whisp, the amount of things I learned was extraordinary. It turns out, the sport got its name from Queerditch Marsh, the first ever recorded version of the game. I also found out that, before Bowman Wright invented the Golden Snitch, wizards were trying to catch and crush a bird called a Snidget. The brooms in the early 12th century were very unreliable and could only get a few feet off the ground, and travel at most 20 mph. Overall, I really liked this book.

 

Check out my review of the other titles in the Hogwarts Library series: Tales of Beedle the Bard, Fantastic Beasts

See my review of the original Harry Potter series here.

Posted by Hellen in Books, Reviews, 0 comments
03
Sep
2021
Tales of Beedle the Bard

Tales of Beedle the Bard

by J. K. Rowling

In the book Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling, there are 5 stories with a lesson to learn. This book is also a part of the Hogwarts Library. The 5 stories are, The Hopping Pot, The Fountain of Fortune, The Hairy Heart, Babbity Rabbity and the Crackling Stump, and the Deathly Hallows. Personally, the Fountain of Fortune is my favorite one, but yours may be different.

The Fountain of Fortune is about this group consisting of 3 elderly women, and one handsome young knight. They all would like to have a nice fortune by splashing themselves in the magical water the fountain possesses. One Of the women lost her valuables, another lost her true love, and another is very very sick.soon. The Prince would like to become rich and happy. So, they all set off on a journey to fill the emptiness caused by these events.

After many days of adventure and sacrifices, they finally reach the fountain. But, only one can bathe in it. The woman who lost all of her valuables says that she doesn’t really need the money anymore while the sick woman was cured during the journey. That only leaves the heartbroken one and the knight. The heartbroken one decides that her love is gone forever and there is no more hope for her. So, the knight says he will jump in the fountain. After a nice refreshing bath, he felt very successful and asked the heartbroken woman if she would like to dance and live with him. She said yes, and the 4 of them left happily and lived a nice long life. But, they never knew that the fountain was not magical at all. 

I really liked this story because of all the humor and the lessons taught at the end of it. Though this story was meant for wizards and witches, all non-magical beings can understand the moral of it too. You don’t need magic or money to be happy and live a good life. You just need to be with the right people.

I didn’t like the story of The Hairy Heart because it was too gruesome. I don’t think it’s suited for kids under seven years old. 

The least impressive story was actually The Deathly Hallows. This is mostly because I already knew the story from reading the last volume of the original Harry Potter series. There was no surprise. 

All in all, J. K. Rowling was a very convincing narrator as Beedle the Bard. It must be a fun challenge as a writer to pretend to be a different person, especially a historical one, and create with the new voice.

 

See my review of the other books in the Hogwarts Library series: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through the Ages

See my review of the original Harry Potter series here

Posted by Hellen in Books, Reviews, 0 comments
24
Aug
2021
Harry Potter – the original seven volume series

Harry Potter – the original seven volume series

by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter 7 book covers

The original Harry Potter series included (1) The Sorcerer’s Stone, (2) The Chamber of Secrets, (3) The Prisoner of Azkaban, (4) The Goblet of Fire, (5) The Order of Phoenix, (6) The Half-Blood Prince, and (7) The Deathly Hallows.

The seven volumes of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling is very popular with kids. A wizard with no parents named Harry Potter is introduced to the Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry at the age of 11. There, he meets his forever loyal friends, Ron and Hermione.The books follow Harry and his friends on a journey to defeat the Dark Lord, Voldemort. The “8th book”, is a script of a play called The Cursed Child, which is about one of Harry’s children, Albus Severus Potter.

My favorite book out of all of them, would have to be the 6th one, The Half-Blood Prince. In this book, Harry discovers more of Snape’s secrets and learns to prevent Voldemort from entering his mind. Snape is my favorite character and this book is mainly focused on him. I like how Snape is very intelligent and gifted in the art of potion making, and beyond loyal to his true companions. As I learned more about Snape’s past, I learned that he was a tortured and lonely soul, which only gravitated me towards him more. 

Sadly, there was a book I did not enjoy as much as the others. The 3rd one, named The Prisoner of Azkaban. It is about Harry’s Godfather, Sirius Black, who was falsely accused of murder and betrayal, and sent to a prison called Azkaban. Many may argue that this was the best book, but I disagree. The whole plot is very confusing, because of everything that’s happening. Peter Pettigrew is actually a servant of Voldemort, Sirius is a dog, Lupin is a werewolf, and Hermione has a time turner to save a Hippogriff. 

Books tend to be much better than the movies, and I agree. The Harry Potter books have so much more details, uncover more secrets and have more characters than the movie, for the movies have a limited amount of time. No one wants to sit and watch a 6 hour movie just for one book. No thanks. 

Overall, I loved these books. I am a huge fan of Harry Potter myself, no matter if I disliked anything. I have already read the books twice and if I forget the books and need to start reading again, fresh in my mind, I would.

See my review of the Hogwarts Library series: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, Quidditch Through the Ages

See my impression about the main character in the 8th book The Cursed Child here.

 

Posted by Hellen in Books, Movies, Reviews, 0 comments
12
Aug
2021
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

by J. K. Rowling

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a part of the Hogwarts Library by J. K. Rowling. In this book, a fictional author Newt Scamander describes each and every creature that is considered a beast, or a non-human being with magical abilities. There are the commonly known unicorns, fairies, and centaurs, but there are also the less famous jabbers, demiguises, and erklings. 

What was most interesting to me is that this book overturned many common assumptions about magical creatures. Muggles, as non-magical beings are called, often display fairies as cute, minute human-like beings who possess magical powers and the ability to talk. However as I found out in the book, fairies are actually unintelligent beasts measuring 1-5 inches and are often used as a decoration. I enjoyed this book because J. K. Rowling put a different perspective on these mythical creatures whom we normally perceive as whimsical and wonderful.

There were many things I didn’t know, such as the fact that centaurs actually preferred to be called beasts, and that erklings are elfish creatures that eat children. J. K Rowling really expanded the world of Harry Potter by introducing us to more previously unknown things, which I thought was really creative and exciting.

In the original seven volumes of the Harry Potter series, Rowling mentioned many of the beasts by name. This book helps a lot because most of the time, J. K. Rowling did not go into much detail about the beasts in the original series, leaving die-hard Harry Potter fans wanting to know more.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Since I’m a big fan of Harry Potter, the setup that allowed me  to “loan” some books from the Hogwarts Library was particularly satisfying. Perhaps one day I can become an expert of magical things, too. 

Posted by Hellen in Books, Reviews, 0 comments
02
May
2021
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

by J. K. Rowling

Reviewed by Eve

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone book cover

original cover for the American edition – where the title is called the Sorcerer’s Stone

In the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (also called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the American version), Harry Potter, an orphan who lives with his aunt and uncle, discovers a world of magic. When Harry turned 11, he received an acceptance letter from a magic school named Hogwarts. Soon after he starts attending Hogwarts, Harry discovers that Voldemort, the dark wizard who murdered Harry’s parents, is back.

The Philosopher’s Stone is a red gem that makes the holder immortal. Voldemort envies immorality. He’s so crude that he possesses a professor named Quirrell to steal the stone, since it is buried at Hogwarts. Harry befriends Ron and Hermione as he becomes more desperate to catch the culprit. They prevent Voldemort from winning by confronting him in the chamber where the stone was hidden. All the teachers in the end decide that it would be better to destroy the stone than to keep it.

One thing I liked was that the story was very original. Some of the obstacles were very strange, such as a mountain troll stuck in a bathroom, or a three headed dog that falls asleep to music. But the way the protagonists solved them was what pulled me closer. Harry actually sticks his wand up the troll’s nose, while Ron bonks it on the head with a bat which I thought was very brave of them. Hermione somehow had the guts to pick up a harp and play it, though she couldn’t really play, to walk past the vicious dog.

Another thing I liked was that the author included so many eye-catching details, that we could have lived inside of her world. I thought the details were very specific, mostly because many authors,  such as C.S. Lewis, described spells as “a flick of the wand,” more so than taking the time to invent new spells and creatures. The author used many Latin words such as lumen, which means light, and revived them into spells such as lumos. Though there are many books and stories about magical worlds, J.K. Rowling really developed the myth about wands, wizards and witches, by creating an entirely new society that brings imagination to a whole other level. 

Overall I really liked this book. Some kids start reading it at the early age of 7, while the majority starts somewhere around 6th grade. It is very fun and enchanting to read, for there is a surprise every couple of pages. You just want to keep on reading to find out how the characters resolve each problem and what will happen in the end.

See my review of the complete Harry Potter series here.

Posted by Hellen in Books, Reviews, 0 comments